The title and header image come from a drawing Ade Bethune created in 1935 that was published in the January 1937 issue of the Catholic Worker newspaper. It depicts the Holy Family at work performing everyday tasks: Joseph and Jesus doing carpentry and Mary stitching. The drawing is an example of a common theme in Bethune's art, especially her early work. Her intent was to show that saints and others were really just ordinary people doing ordinary things, and that it was within everyone's grasp to be "saintlike," to perform their duties and look after each other as best they could.
The phrase "pray and work" also had meaning for Ade Bethune and is something she lived out her life doing. It was important to her that if someone attempted to do something, no matter how small or insignificant it might seem, it should be done well to proclaim glory to God. Bethune first wrote about this idea in Work, published in 1938 by the John Stevens Shop. But it was a concept that played a part in every action she undertook--whether creating art, designing a liturgical space, or working to improve communities in her home of Newport, Rhode Island.
