Dorothy Day: A Look at the Life of One of Pope’s "4 Great Americans"

During his speech before Congress today, Pope Francis highlighted the work of four "great" Americans: Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton. "In these times when social concerns are so important, I cannot fail to mention the Servant of God Dorothy Day, who founded the Catholic Worker Movement," the pope said. "Her social activism, her passion for justice and for the cause of the oppressed, were inspired by the gospel, her faith and the example of the saints." He went on to say, "A nation can be considered great when it defends liberty as Lincoln did, when it fosters a culture which enables people to "dream" of full rights for all their brothers and sisters, as Martin Luther King sought to do; when it strives for justice and the cause of the oppressed, as Dorothy Day did by her tireless work, the fruit of a faith which becomes dialogue and sows peace in the contemplative style of Thomas Merton." We look at the life of Day, who was endorsed for canonization by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in 2012. Day founded the Catholic Worker Movement with Peter Maurin. Thus began a life of voluntary poverty and radical politics. The Catholic Worker first began by setting up urban houses of hospitality and farm communes to feed and shelter the poor. The movement also advocated pacifism and opposition to the draft. We speak to her granddaughter, Martha Hennessy, and Robert Ellsberg, who has edited and published the writings of Dorothy Day.

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