Lecture Explores How Opus Dei Bridges Work and Faith in Modern Catholicism

Frank Ngo from Ohio State University discussed how the Catholic organization, Opus Dei, reflects broader shifts in the Church’s understanding of work and ordinary life.

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio

Modern society often presents work and spirituality as separate from one another. Professional jobs are largely guided by productivity and economic gain, while religion is often viewed as private, or partially removed from everyday life.

In a recent lecture on campus, Frank Ngo from the Ohio State University discussed how the Catholic organization, Opus Dei, reflects broader shifts in the Church’s understanding of work and ordinary life. Ngo’s lecture “From opus Dei to the Opus Dei: the Modern Reevaluation of Labor in the Roman Catholic Church” is part of the Center for the Study of Liberal Democracy’s Order and Influence Series, which explores the role of Catholicism in society. Ngo argued that shifts in how religious communities value everyday life reveal how those communities understand holiness itself.

Opus Dei was founded in 1928 by Spanish Catholic priest Josemaría Escrivá and defines work as a path to holiness not by withdrawing from the secular world, but by ritualizing ordinary life. Members view themselves as secular, in contrast to consecrated religious members, such as nuns and monks, who live withdrawn from society.

Rather than viewing labor as a burden or a means to an end, Opus Dei frames work as humanity’s original vocation, according to Ngo. Members of Opus Dei maintain discreet piety in the roles they already hold within society. As Ngo explained, if someone is a father, a student, a friend, they should strive to be virtuous within these roles.

The name comes from the Latin phrase opus Dei, meaning “the work of God.” Escrivá believed that everyday work could become part of the “work of God” and worked to bring back an earlier model of Christianity where laypeople were very involved in charity work, education and community life, according to Ngo. Opus Dei sought to place the responsibility to pursue sainthood back into the hands of ordinary people.

Historically, the Catholic Church has viewed ordinary life as subordinate to monastic life. In medieval Christianity, holiness was often associated with monastic life, where monks and nuns took vows of poverty, celibacy and obedience, maintaining strong boundaries between the sacred and the secular. Liturgical prayer took precedence over ordinary work, something referred to as “time out of time.”

According to Ngo, the Church recognized labor as necessary for existence, but considered ordinary labor to be fleeting as it is subject to the passing of time. In contrast, Opus Dei members view ordinary labor and life as a path to holiness when oriented towards God.

Philosopher Charles Taylor described ordinary life as parts of life concerning labor, economic activity, marriage and family, Ngo mentioned. For members of Opus Dei, spiritual holiness can be sought through structuring ordinary life and work around spiritual discipline. Members often repeat a saying, “Sanctify your work, sanctify yourself through your work, and sanctify others through your work.” This frames work as the hinge of sanctification, according to Ngo.

Opus Dei offers an alternative way of life that expands the boundaries of spirituality into modern, everyday life. Where monastic rituals take place during “time outside of time,” Opus Dei members ritualize ordinary life through spiritual discipline, structure and intention. These elements make up the Plan of Life, a pursuit of holiness. Ngo discussed how members incorporate prayer into commutes, work, and domestic routines, highlighting that these practices do not compete with secular obligations but instead integrate the two.

As Ngo explained, modern Catholic movements increasingly reflect a shift toward “the common person having the responsibility to be saintly.” Vatican II brought shifts in the Church that reflected the modern world, noting the importance of “universal holiness” and lay participation in the Church.

Ngo argued that Opus Dei reflects a modern shift within the Church where ordinary people are encouraged to pursue sainthood themselves. Consequently, Opus Dei’s structure is largely made up of Catholic practices available to any Catholic, but the difference lies in the institution of Opus Dei and the spiritual direction it offers to its members.

According to Ngo, there are many different ways the Church responds to modernity, and Opus Dei is just one of those changes. Opus Dei demonstrates how the Church has increasingly recognized ordinary life as a path to holiness. It shows how religion responds to changes in society and seeks to integrate modern work and religion, suggesting that spirituality can be found in ordinary life.

The next lecture in the Order and Influence Series is tonight at 6:00 p.m. in Law School 7200. More information about its upcoming lectures can be found here.