Q.: What is “band-aid” work? A.: It is a word invented by those who believe we shouldn’t help poor people with things, but focus on the structures that cause their poverty. Giving them things is “band-aid work.” To those who believe this, the only real help is changing structures. Mother Teresa does not appeal to them…. continue reading
The Beauty of the House of God
June 1, 1995 by
Christy is a Catholic Worker and graduate of the Univerity of Wisconsin at Eau Claire. Last week a seven-year-old boy staying with his battered mother and younger sister asked me something which I will never forget. He asked me, “Is this the house of God?” It wasn’t the first time I had heard Casa Juan Diego referred to in… continue reading
Correspondence between Dorothy Day and the Benedictines (Virgil Michel)
April 1, 1995 by
February 14, 1934 Dear Miss Day: Father Busch recently told me of your request to have “Orate Frates” exchanged for “The Catholic Worker.” I have spoken to the present editor-in-chief of “Orate Fratres” and he is putting your name on the exchange list. I am sending you a new study club outline on the liturgy… continue reading
Virgil Michel, O.S.B., and the Benedictine Influence on the CW Movement: Virgil Michel, Fellow Worker in Christ
April 1, 1995 by
To us at the Catholic Worker, Father Virgil was a dear friend and adviser, bringing to us his tremendous strength and knowledge. He first came to visit us at our beginnings on East Fifteenth Street. he was like Peter Maurin in the friendly simple way he would come in and sit down, starting right in… continue reading
Bourgeois Spirit undermines Christian Renewal (Virgil Michel)
April 1, 1995 by
The supreme guiding motive of the bourgeois mind is precisely the personal gain or profit that the medieval idealist rejected as a final goal. The principle of gain for its own sake, of an endlessly increasing profit, is now set up as the one sensible goal of all human life and endeavor. All the aspects… continue reading
The Liturgy the Basis of Social Regeneration (Virgil Michel)
April 1, 1995 by
At the mention of the subject of this article one might be inclined to ask: What has the liturgy to do with social reconstruction or the social question? Can the liturgy help to give jobs or raise wages? Can there be any connection between the liturgy and the social problem? The moment we deal with… continue reading
Obituary of Emmanuel Mounier (1905-1950)
March 1, 1995 by
It was a great shock to us to hear of the death, by heart attack, in Paris of Emmanuel Mounier, at forty five. Mounier was the guiding spirit in the French personalist movement, and founder and director of Esprit, the magazine which is the organ of the movement. Mounier, who was the child of peasants,… continue reading
Emmanuel Mounier and Personalism
March 1, 1995 by
The following are excerpts from the works of Mounier: Principles of a Personalist Civilization A personalist civilization is one whose structure and spirit are directed towards the development as persons of all the individuals constituting it. They have as their ultimate end to enable every individual to live as a person, that is, to exercise… continue reading
We Urge Our Readers to be Personalist
March 1, 1995 by
We are urging our readers to be neither collectivist nor individualist,but personalist. This consciousness of oneself as a member of the Mystical Body of Christ will lead to great things. We are working for the Communitarian revolution to oppose both the rugged individualism of the capitalist era, and the collectivism of the Communist revolution. We… continue reading
Why Volunteer?
March 1, 1995 by
The stories of the men are incredible. They must endure so much suffering just to arrive at our door, beaten down and flat broke. Many have problems eating, because they haven’t eaten for days, and their digestive systems are out of whack. Others come with scratches and cuts from the cactus that they accidently dove into when they heard… continue reading
