Our last issue was controversial in presenting complementarity as the choice of Dorothy Day, Sr. Prudence Allen, St. Hildegard of Bingen and Louise Yarian Zwick. It has raised further questions about the marriage relationship of the Editors of the Houston Catholic Worker. Who is in charge? Who writes the articles? The authors have known each other for… continue reading
Is Marriage Un-American? Secret of Good Sexuality
When the American Institute of Health insisted that the words “husband and wife” could no longer be used in their offices, little did they realize how prophetic was their action in commenting on the state of affairs of love and marriage in the United States. By suppressing the use of the words “husband and wife,”… continue reading
Is Capitalism Catholic? Pope Demands Justice
It was a gathering of fourteen immigrants who are Catholic Workers who inspired this article. These men were paid so little–$15.00 to $20.00 per week in their countries–that they were forced to migrate to survive. The response from new arrivals who have worked for foreign companies in their countries is always the same: “Either we have a place to… continue reading
The Common Good and the Body of Christ: St. Thomas Aquinas and the Catholic Worker Movement
This is the thirteenth article in the series on the saints and philosophers who influenced Peter Maurin and Dorothy in the development of the Catholic Worker movement. The Catholic Worker is neither liberal nor conservative. As the editors of the Houston Catholic Worker have insisted with determined constancy, the Catholic Worker embodies the radical discipleship… continue reading
The Roots of Dorothy Day’s Pacifism:Solidarity, Compassion and a Stubborn Hold on Truth
There has been one systematic study of Dorothy Day’s pacifism and that of the Catholic Worker movement, Robert Gilliam’s “Put Up Your Sword: the Pacifism of Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker,” an excellent unpublished 180 page manuscript. It would be folly for me to trace the development of Dorothy Day’s thinking on war and… continue reading
Dorothy Day, Prophet of Pacifism for the Catholic Church
One of Dorothy Day’s great gifts to the Catholic Church and to the United States was her drawing together of Catholic biblical and theological resources to establish pacifism and conscientious objection as a legitimate stance for Catholics and for Americans. Today this is not just a teaching of Dorothy Day. The U. S. Catholic Bishops… continue reading
The Sacrament of the Poor
T.J., a native Texan (Brownsville) and a lawyer (U.T.) spent several months at Casa Juan Diego as part of his Jesuit novitiate. The Southern Jesuit province is restoring the original Ignatian practice of having novices live poorly with the poor. Casa Juan Diego qualifies as a site for this experience! “And the King will answer,… continue reading