Biography of Peter Maurin
This essay by Jim Forest on Peter Maurin was written for The Encyclopedia of American Catholic History published by the Liturgical Press.
A Collection of Peter Maurin’s Easy Essays
Peter Maurin dispensed his vision for a Christian social order in short, memorable blank verse poems that he called “Easy Essays.” Here are 82 of his Easy Essays, organized into 11 themes.
Peter Maurin’s farm-rooted vision
Seventy years after his death, Peter Maurin’s vision of a revolution marked by a synthesis of cult (religion), culture (learning and arts), and cultivation (agriculture) is gaining traction among a whole new generation of Catholic Workers living on the land. By Maria Benevento. Reprinted with permission from The National Catholic Reporter, May 15, 2019.
Why Peter Maurin Matters
Peter Maurin’s influence on the Catholic Worker Movement is often overlooked, even in Catholic Worker circles. But he was the intellectual author of the movement, and gas much to teach the movement even today. A talk by Paul Magno presented at the Dorothy Day Centenary Conference, Marquette University, October 10, 1997.
Vision Gives Us Life: A Lesson from Peter Maurin
A reflection on the prophetic vision of Peter Maurin.
By Paul Magno. Reprinted from The Little Way, the paper of the Dorothy Day Catholic Worker, Washington, DC, Spring 1996.
Peter Maurin: To Bring the Social Order To Christ
For some time, Peter Maurin and Dorothy Day, along with the Catholic Worker movement they founded, have been thought by many to exemplify the prophetic voice in the twentieth century. However, the Catholic Worker movement is not without critics. Does a small movement, founded in the Depression, emphasizing personalism and the land, hold any hope for the massive social reconstruction necessary in an urban-bureaucrat age? An essay by Marc Ellis excerpted from Revolution of the Heart.
Peter Maurin Farm
Summary: Explains Peter Maurin’s ideal of “agronomic universities”–communal farms founded on a philosophy of work, especially manual labor. While an ideal, farm communities often suffered from too little skill and community conflicts. Lauds the new Peter Maurin farm on Staten Island and envisions deepening one’s spiritual life in work on the land. (DDLW #923). The Catholic Worker, Oct/Nov 1979, 1, 2, 7
Peter Maurin 1877-1977
Summary: Recounts her first meeting with Peter Maurin in 1932, his teaching style, his personal example, and his platform for the Catholic Worker: “Roundtable Discussions, Houses of Hospitality and Farming Communes–those were the three planks in Peter Maurin’s platform.” (DDLW #256). The Catholic Worker, May 1977, 1, 9.
The Day I Met Peter Maurin
A first-hand account of meeting Peter Maurin. By Stanley Vishnewski. Taken from Wings of the Dawn by Stanley Vishnewsi and reprinted in The Catholic Worker, May 1976, p.1, 5.
Peter Maurin, Personalist
Summary: Tells a story of Peter Maurin’s work at the Easton farm and goes on to summarize his principal teachings. Peter was a deeply religious man, a reader and constant student, who recommended books, especially the lives of the saints. He valued physical labor and wanted farming cooperatives, “clarification of thought”, and houses of hospitality. His faith was invincible, he exhorted a philosophy of poverty and the study of man’s freedom. (DDLW #914) The Catholic Worker, May 1965, pp. 1, 2, 5, 6