Towards the end of the Second Vatican
Council, Dorothy Day, co-founder of the Catholic Worker Movement, was asked
about the future of the church in America.
Day responded with the hope that Catholic youth would become more
involved in causes which would increase their love for humanity, and also their
love for God. Day’s response spoke of
the greater need for the participation of the laity in not only terms of the
“Liturgy of the People,” but also for the greater transcendence of the human
person, in their going forth into the community, and performing works of mercy
for the betterment of all society.
Fifty years after the closing of the Council, one must wonder whether
there is still cause for hope and unity in a postmodern nation filled with
atheism, pluralism, and a general turning away from organized religion. Has the secular so overtaken the spiritual
that organized religion will cease to exist in the United States? I would like to believe that there is still
hope for the future involvement of the youth and laity, however an decisive effort
must be made to incorporate the teachings and witnesses offered by such
American saints—and saintly figures—as Day, Venerable Solanus Casey, and Elizabeth
Ann Seton.
Over the past five years, I have researched and written extensively
about Servant of God Day, an avowed pacifist, and advocate for the poor. My fascination and deeper appreciation of
Day’s witness concerns the power of her conversion experience, and her total gift
of self to all of God’s creations, especially those poor and marginalized
individuals which society often seeks to exclude from its very midst.
Prior to her conversion to Catholicism in December of 1927, Day had
admittedly led a most sinful life—she
was briefly a Socialist during her time at the University of Illinois,
Urbana-Champaign, wrote for both Communist and Socialist magazines and
newspapers, was arrested in front of the White House for protesting in favor of
the women’s suffragist movement, was arrested a second time under the guise of
“prostitution” during the Palmer “Red Raids” of suspected anarchists in the
1920s, attempted suicide on two occasions, had an abortion,
engaged in a year-long marriage to Berkeley Tobey—a playboy who would
ultimately marry seven or eight different women in his lifetime—and later bore a child out of wedlock with Forster
Batterham.
However, Day ultimately experienced a deep
conversion experience, and once she was touched by God’s ineffable grace, she
did not vacillate in her commitment to serve the poor, voluntarily living a
life of true Christian poverty for the remainder of her life. Day’s witness inspires me—a most sinful
man—with the hope of one day attaining the kingdom of God. For if someone with Day’s past could see the
light of God and seize upon His grace, then I truly believe that she has left
me with a path that I can follow. Day
has also inspired me with hope for the future of an inclusive Church, although
there is much left that needs to be accomplished.
Amidst declining Mass attendance, and all
too numerous parish closings and mergers, I wonder about the youth of today, who
have left the Catholic Church in America.
As a Catechist, I have witnessed many former students who have
“disappeared” after receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation (Eighth
Grade). Perhaps the doctrine of the
Church seems too rigorous for them, or the very thought of being religious is
not fashionable in our fast-paced culture.
Perhaps the real reason is that the youth of today need to experience
life on a deeper level, before making a commitment, and service, to a religion
that their parents chose for them at birth.
If that is the case then, as a community, we need to have more patience,
and keep the door open for the youth to return and get involved when they are
ready. To this end, it is important that
we stress the power of saintly individuals like Day and Casey (saints in our
own backyard, so to speak) early on in the education process.
My greater hope is that the Christian
witnesses provided by Day and others, will teach the youth (and those of the
laity who Christ called tepid) to realize that it is okay to fall away from
religion for a time. We are prone to sin,
after all. However, we must also recover
the power of the saints who lived in this country. Their witnesses are, after all, signs that
point to a greater reality—that is that no matter how sinful we all may be, God
loves us unconditionally, and waits for our return.
Robert P. Russo
Lourdes University
