Beliefs of The Catholic Worker
"Our rule is the works of mercy," said Dorothy Day. "It is the way of sacrifice, worship, a sense of reverence."
According to co-founder Peter Maurin, the following are the beliefs of the Catholic Worker:
- gentle personalism of traditional Catholicism.
- personal obligation of looking after the needs of our brother.
- daily practice of the Works of Mercy.
- Houses of Hospitality for the immediate relief of those who are in need.
- establishment of Farming Communes where each one works according to his ability and gets according to his need.
- creating a new society within the shell of the old with the philosophy of the new.
The radical philosophy of the group can be described as Christian anarchism. Anne Klejment, a history lecturer at University of St. Thomas, wrote of the Catholic Worker Movement:
The Catholic Worker considered itself a Christian anarchist movement. All authority came from God; and the state, having by choice distanced itself from Christian perfectionism, forfeited its ultimate authority over the citizen...Catholic Worker anarchism followed Christ as a model of nonviolent revolutionary behavior...He respected individual conscience. But he also preached a prophetic message, difficult for many of his contemporaries to embrace.Read more about this topic: Catholic Worker Movement
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