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On Pilgrimage (July/August 1960)

Dorothy DayByDorothy Day

By Dorothy Day Nothing can be more engrossing than taking care of children, and this month has been a busy…

By Dorothy Day

Nothing can be more engrossing than taking care of children, and this month has been a busy one both on Staten Island, on the beach, and at Perkinsville, Vermont, where a new child, Catherine Ann, was born to David and Tamar Hennessy on July 9, instead of on July 24 when she was expected. Not only did I not write a continuation of my travels which I promised for this issue, but I wrote no “on pilgrimage” at all. Instead, I wrote a review of the one play I saw, “The Connection” and an account of the one Friday evening meeting I attended at which Fritz Eichenberg spoke. In the September issue, the “On Pilgrimage” will be continued.

 

Dorothy Day

Dorothy Day (November 8, 1897 – November 29, 1980) was co-founder of the Catholic Worker Movement along with Peter Maurin. A writer and journalist by trade, she and Maurin founded the Catholic Worker newspaper. Much of her writing on the Catholic Worker Movement website is taken from the newspaper. The Roman Catholic Church is currently considering her cause for canonization.

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 C. W. Retreat

Dorothy DayByDorothy Day

Summary: Points to Christ’s example of getting away from the multitudes and the importance of finding Him for their work. Notes that a three day silent retreat attended by people from 15 Catholic Worker houses has led to a their renewed sense of strength, unity, and purpose. (The Catholic Worker, September 1939, 4. DDLW #345).

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C. W. States Stand on Strikes

Dorothy DayByDorothy Day

Summary: Articulates their position on strikes while eschewing Communist class war tactics and violent means. Supports strikers because of their god-given dignity and the unity of the Mystical Body–“We are members one of another.” They aim to change the social order, accept sacrifice and failure, to build the Kingdom of Heaven. (DDLW #940). The Catholic Worker, Jul 1936, pp. 1, 2

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On Pilgrimage – September 1950

Dorothy DayByDorothy Day

Summary: Notes they have differences of opinion about pacifism and the use of force. Observes that Gandhi said “anger is violence.” Speaks fondly of their Mott Street neighbors just before their move to new quarters. Struggles with the decision to acquire a farm on Staten Island and shares a meditation on “the everlasting arms which sustain us” while riding the ferry back to the city. (The Catholic Worker, September 1950, 1, 2. DDLW #614).

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On Pilgrimage – July/August 1958

Dorothy DayByDorothy Day

Summary: Delights in the refreshing mornings for study and prayer at their beach houses on Staten Island, in spite of noisy children in the evening. Observes that many priests disapprove of Ammon Henacy’s long fasts for peace. Suggests that the modest an prudent keep their work going more than the extremists they often attract. (The Catholic Worker, July-August 1958, 1, 2, 7, 8. DDLW #741).

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Why Do the Members of Christ Tear One Another?

Dorothy DayByDorothy Day

Summary: Protesting against a journalist’s assertion that they are sentimentalists in their pacifism and afraid of suffering, she challenges her critics to spend time in the city slums where Catholic Workers regularly battle the realities of disease, poverty, filth, cold, foul smells, etc. Quoting Dostoevsky, she assures her readers that Catholic Workers were not sanctimonious but approached their work with true humility and love. Notes with irony that pacifism, while not popular with society as a whole, was the philosophy which society wished to impose on the poor and disenfranchised victims of America’s class war. Rejects the suggestion that they should remain silent. (DDLW #390). The Catholic Worker, February 1942, 1, 4, 7.