The genius and driving force behind the Catholic Worker was, of course, the indomitable Dorothy Day. Jim Forest first met Dorothy when he was a young man of 21. His experiences with Dorothy are well known. He is currently revising his biography of her, Love is the Measure. It is due out next year.
Imagine though my incredible good fortune. Here is a man who has not only met, but worked side by side with Dorothy, Thomas Merron, Thich Nhat Hanh and more. Yet, Jim is in no way pridefull. In fact visiting him and his lovely wife, Nancy, is pure joy.
Dorothy Day's approach, as Jim shared with me on one of many walks, can be sumed up simply: "live generously, loving even your enemies. That means do not shoot them!"
An simple example of generosity: Nancy & Jim showed me a small shirt for their grand daughter that they had just printed with I'd rather be reading Dostoyevesky. I commented that I want to take a copy of the famous picture, Christ of the Breadlines by Fritz Eichenberg, http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimforest/2251716549/ to have it imprinted on a T-shirt. Next thing I knew, Jim went upstairs & got me a full size book of that and many others by Eichenberg saying simply, "It's yours."
Jim & Nancy live in an incredibly beautiful and fascinating Dutch city that feels much more like a small Dutch town, Alkmaar. Canals of all sizes run around and through it. Houses date back centuries. Next door to Jim & Nancy is the oldest house in Alkmaar, built in 1560. I waited under its natural outcropping for a downpour to stop! I will be sending out a set of pictures from Alkmaar one I learn how to down & upload them.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Friday, August 28, 2009
Experiencing the Amsterdam Catholic Worker
As I begin to write this, it is 4:00 a.m. back home in Maryland and 1:36 a.m. on the west coast.
I will wait a bit before I share specific stories. (Perhaps a tad paranoid, but I do not want to put into jeopardy anyone who is seeking asylum. I am not in jeopardy as I do not break any laws, but given ability to hack online & search, I do not want to lead anyone to one of these people. They have been through enough.)
Suffice it to say at this point, that we who are safe, secure, and relatively healthy and peaceful do not realize on a gut level just how fortunate we are. Richard Engel, NBC Bureau Chief for the Middle East and only in his early 30's, reminds us how easy it is to become numbed to tragedy.
Sitting with one of the people seeking asylum and listening to their experience in whatever English they can manage can be heartbreaking.
Being hunted down in their own country (because their father was on the losing side, because they have the wrong religion, because they refuse to fight or to join the terrorists, etc.)
Then having to hide and try to escape,
having their parents pay large sums of money to "travel agents,"only to be left behind once abroad,
I will wait a bit before I share specific stories. (Perhaps a tad paranoid, but I do not want to put into jeopardy anyone who is seeking asylum. I am not in jeopardy as I do not break any laws, but given ability to hack online & search, I do not want to lead anyone to one of these people. They have been through enough.)
Suffice it to say at this point, that we who are safe, secure, and relatively healthy and peaceful do not realize on a gut level just how fortunate we are. Richard Engel, NBC Bureau Chief for the Middle East and only in his early 30's, reminds us how easy it is to become numbed to tragedy.
Sitting with one of the people seeking asylum and listening to their experience in whatever English they can manage can be heartbreaking.
Being hunted down in their own country (because their father was on the losing side, because they have the wrong religion, because they refuse to fight or to join the terrorists, etc.)
Then having to hide and try to escape,
having their parents pay large sums of money to "travel agents,"only to be left behind once abroad,
finding themselves alone in a foreign country, knowing no one, and not speaking the language,
- having to defend themselves from unscrupulous people, from the police
- often put into prison
- living in the street
- hoping against hope for some help
- people passing you by and looking the other way
But that is not the end of the story...
Perhaps you find a group of people to help you, to take you in. You then begin a long journey to prove you cannot possibly go back to oyur own country. (If you went back, you would face torture, waisting away in a small jail cell for years with 50 other people and little or no food, and finally possibly death)
So the journey in the new country involves:
- trying desperately to find some proof for asylum
- not being allowed to work or get career training or education
- learning the new language as best you can
- having no idea if your parent(s), siblings or alive.
- no one back home to contact
IMAGINE, my friends, living one month much less 10 years like that.
May I ask you to:
- stop and pray for them?
- think what else can you do today?
- get the word out?
Phil in Holland, for now.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Greetings from Hackney - London N1
I hope this finds everyone well.
I received an incredibly warm welcome here. One young man hugged me so hard and so long that I had think back about 20 years since that happened - a newly graduated high school Senior who had struggled.
Another who is fun but tends to be somewhat reticent, kept giving me periodic hugs. The two kind, regular house managers smiled (I hope!) as soon the house was ringing with laughter. To avoid jet lag, I managed to stay up 34 hours.
Yesterday there was a Mass and social for local Catholic Workers. I met a young couple from Australia who live here London now. They had just returned from Australia. They have rock/metal group. David is going to send me a link which I'll share.
I have begun to network to try to better understand the asylum processes. I'd like to try to help some of the guys' applications to move along.
One, my favorite, his got lost and the lawyers forgot all about it. One blessing is that now that he has been here longer than 18 months, they cannot force him to return to Italy. He has immigrated to Italy from Africa. The experience in Italy was very bad. The EU policy is to insist that you apply for Asylum in the country in which you first enter. Italy is not helpful.
Tomorrow will be the soup kitchen and Monday begins the Community Cafe. It is great fun for me as I get to renew acquaintances with many people each day.
One person, Maureen, who volunteered at the soup kitchen on Sundays just died. She was only in her 50's. I had thought she was younger. I wondered why her email stopped abruptly mid-year. I was shaken by the news of her death as I liked her very much.
Be well all and I'll blog again when there's something worth hearing!
Blessings,
Phil
I received an incredibly warm welcome here. One young man hugged me so hard and so long that I had think back about 20 years since that happened - a newly graduated high school Senior who had struggled.
Another who is fun but tends to be somewhat reticent, kept giving me periodic hugs. The two kind, regular house managers smiled (I hope!) as soon the house was ringing with laughter. To avoid jet lag, I managed to stay up 34 hours.
Yesterday there was a Mass and social for local Catholic Workers. I met a young couple from Australia who live here London now. They had just returned from Australia. They have rock/metal group. David is going to send me a link which I'll share.
I have begun to network to try to better understand the asylum processes. I'd like to try to help some of the guys' applications to move along.
One, my favorite, his got lost and the lawyers forgot all about it. One blessing is that now that he has been here longer than 18 months, they cannot force him to return to Italy. He has immigrated to Italy from Africa. The experience in Italy was very bad. The EU policy is to insist that you apply for Asylum in the country in which you first enter. Italy is not helpful.
Tomorrow will be the soup kitchen and Monday begins the Community Cafe. It is great fun for me as I get to renew acquaintances with many people each day.
One person, Maureen, who volunteered at the soup kitchen on Sundays just died. She was only in her 50's. I had thought she was younger. I wondered why her email stopped abruptly mid-year. I was shaken by the news of her death as I liked her very much.
Be well all and I'll blog again when there's something worth hearing!
Blessings,
Phil
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Eunice Shriver counted Dorothy Day among her friends
Among the many friends Eunice Kennedy Shriver made throughout her illustrious life was Dorothy Day, co-founder of the Catholic Worker Movement. Daughter Maria Shriver said in her eulogy during her mother’s funeral Aug. 14 that Shriver considered Day a personal hero, along with Mary, Mother Teresa and her own mother, Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy, and her sister Rosemary.
Day referred to Shriver in her diaries several times in the 1970s. Day’s references to the member of the Kennedy clan mention how Shriver would call just to chat, invite her to Hyannisport for a break or to discuss deeper concerns.
“She (Shriver) is reading my books,” Day wrote April 15, 1976. “Bedside books, she calls them. She is not happy. ‘Do you believe in heaven and hell?’ she asked me. ‘Why?’”
In an entry dated Oct. 30, 1979, Day told about another call from Shriver in which she said her brother, Sen. Edward Kennedy, would announce a run for the White House in nine days.
Several years earlier, July 14, 1975, Day described another call from Shriver in which she said her husband, Sargent, was planning to seek the presidency. Shriver asked Day to sign on as a supporter. Day was a bit flabbergasted. “I am an anarchist,” she wrote. “But ‘pray for him.’ I like her. He is a daily communicant.”
The diary excerpts can be found in “The Duty of Delight: The Diaries of Dorothy Day” edited by Robert Ellsberg and published in 2008 by Marquette University Press.
By Dennis Sadowski http://cnsblog.wordpress.com/2009/08/17/shriver-counted-dorothy-day-among-her-friends/
Day referred to Shriver in her diaries several times in the 1970s. Day’s references to the member of the Kennedy clan mention how Shriver would call just to chat, invite her to Hyannisport for a break or to discuss deeper concerns.
“She (Shriver) is reading my books,” Day wrote April 15, 1976. “Bedside books, she calls them. She is not happy. ‘Do you believe in heaven and hell?’ she asked me. ‘Why?’”
In an entry dated Oct. 30, 1979, Day told about another call from Shriver in which she said her brother, Sen. Edward Kennedy, would announce a run for the White House in nine days.
Several years earlier, July 14, 1975, Day described another call from Shriver in which she said her husband, Sargent, was planning to seek the presidency. Shriver asked Day to sign on as a supporter. Day was a bit flabbergasted. “I am an anarchist,” she wrote. “But ‘pray for him.’ I like her. He is a daily communicant.”
The diary excerpts can be found in “The Duty of Delight: The Diaries of Dorothy Day” edited by Robert Ellsberg and published in 2008 by Marquette University Press.
By Dennis Sadowski http://cnsblog.wordpress.com/2009/08/17/shriver-counted-dorothy-day-among-her-friends/
Monday, July 13, 2009
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
A Grace Filled Day*
A Grace Filled Day*
* Regrettably all too many televangelists have killed words like grace, religious, and Christian. much less Jesus. I use the word 'grace' here to indicate the presence of the 'more' that many of us believe must exist, though we have limited ability to understand - often referred to as God.
In the afternoon I began to make my way to Tacoma, about an hour's bus ride away to visit the Tacoma Catholic Worker, Guadalupe House.
First I met the irrepressible Peter. Guadalupe House is quite large - two smaller houses joined making it possible to have 13 bedrooms for live in workers & transitional housing for homeless trying to get off the street. Every person I met and it ended up being about 30 were so alive. Today was the day for the open Liturgy and dinner.
The liturgy today was led by the same Peter brimming with excitement. we each mentioned someone who had died to keep in our heart during the prayer. I mentioned Jim and Dorothy Stang. After a reading by Isaiah, individuals shared memories of those who had recently died in the streets . Just to think, here were people in life experiences that we never would want to experience for an hour much less months & years - genuinely sharing their recognition of simple goodness and insight. One felt a sense of community.
At one point we were invited to share how we'd spend our last day. My thoughts went to my daughter, my new son-in-law & his incredible family, and my family & friends gathered simply enjoying each other & the day. Similar to the one I just spent in North East with the Drabs. A grace filled day.
After the Kiss of Peace I joined several to serve the food cafeteria style. I had just heard about the amazing Fr. Bischel, pronounced simply Bix. Double wow! Next to me stood a tall, slender, bearded 81 one year old man dishing out the main course. He made instant contact and you knew you were in the company of greatness - not media like - but real. He was interested in the person right there - an amazing man.
25 years of his work , influence and many good people, this once gang ridden block, now has 5 houses owned by the TCW. He has bought and mostly had donated almost every individual home. People are so impressed by his work that when they die, they simply leave the house to the TCW.
In addition to the main house, surrounding a grass center, there are many buildings: one housed a recently financially devastated family, some houses individuals as well as Bix. In one there is a Contemplation Room (a quiet peaceful room) open to all. Just retrieve the key from a slot outside & let yourself in. it works!
Bix, a Buddhist, an ex-marine and about 10 others travel to Hiroshima next month for the annual remembrance of those two dark days in 1945. They carry a simple petition asking forgiveness for our part in it. Today's Tacoma Tribune carries a front page article on the upcoming trip.
Arriving back in Seattle, I went to get a soda across the street from the hostel. A bedraggled homeless woman approached me. She didn't want money - just please a sandwich from Subway.
Inside we went, happy to help but sadly a tad uncomfortable as I know how proprietors often feel about 'those people coming here.' Christ present? Right next to me. In the person of this likely mentally ill lady. But not quietly! In a loud voice, she kept telling me just a simple tuna sandwich just like her mother made for her. Heck, Subway has foot long subs for about $ 5. Go for it. Nope! Just a 1/2 . She didn't want to impose. And hey, tuna and more mayonnaise please. By now we were the center of a completely still eatery. I'm thinking almost done - going from exalting in her joy and wondering if everyone was going to throw me out. She actually got the young man to put on 1 & 1/2 extra scoops of tuna and lots more mayonnaise!
What was the best in a way was the sheer joy of the two workers. The young man the next day told everyone who came in when I was there. That I could do without!!! Small world? One of the workers was Palestinian. I shared with him my discovery of a Palestinian detective series.
Grace filled day? Does God exist? No need to ask. Tom* was right!
*Tom, my ex-Jesuit spiritual director, is a god send. Today he led me to explore just how I experience God's presence in my life: my daughter & new son-in-law, family & friends, nature, the Eucharist, in individual people I meet, not infrequently the poorest. Prayer then is simply being present to those experiences.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
People We Met on our Christmas Trip
Hello all,
Laura, Jay (her fiancé), and I travelled to Europe the day after Christmas. Originally planned for June, we did our best given the shorter time window. Telling you about all the sites* you yourself have visited or heard about seems silly so below are several interesting people we met etc.
Highlights:
Brussels
Laura & Jay met several couples and individuals to hang out" with: Lebanese, French, and Aussies among others. We shared a table New Years Eve with an Aussie couple who just completed teaching in Thailand. I enjoyed seeing L & J have a New Years Eve experience with so many young people from around the world.
On the streets, it got a bit dicey. Seems the hooligan types have a tradition of chaos on the streets. Jay took pictures of people jumping from car to car in front of the Stock Exchange. Something ironic about that! I saw news broadcasts showing the extreme violence in Paris and Amsterdam - cars burning etc.
Bruges - A wonderful New Years dinner at Brasserie Chagall.
Amsterdam
Red Light District
Laura I took a walk near Amsterdam Centraal (train station) and the end of trams lines. I wondered aloud if we might we venturing into the Red Light District. Shortly the sex shops came into view. Laura had us make a hasty retreat! No place to be with your dad!!
By far our best accommodations were in Amsterdam, but then I have never paid so much for a room! Rooms are expensive and hard to find at New Years there. We both had large suites with great amenities.
Alkmaar - Jim and Nancy Forest
Wanting Laura and Jay to have an evening without dad, I had the opportunity to travel by train to a small town which is the cheese capitol, Alkmaar.
For me this was a wonderful evening. For those familiar with the Catholic worker and peace movement will recognize Jim's name. He knew well (often worked with) Dorothy Day, Thomas Merton, the Berrigans, Henri Nouwen, Dom Eudes, John Dear among others. Jim shared a story with us at dinner about how the British MI5 boarded a plane from Paris with pictures of Daniel Berrigan hoping to keep this dissident out of the country. You know how peaceful opposition is so threatening to those in power! Thinking ahead, Jim was on that plane. Daniel came on a later flight unimpeded!
When I arrived, Jim took me on a walking tour of Alkmaar. He is a great tour guide. What a way to meet good people and to obtain a sense of the local culture.
Nancy provided a feast for a king, Moussaka. At dinner, Nancy´s soon to be 93 year old mother joined us. I would never have known she was 93. She had lived with them for about 18 months. She paints regularly and is quite talented. (See website info below.)
Good heavens! I went online to find jim´s www. so I could include it. In persuing it quickly, I went to photos to find his mother in laws picture photos. Under friends I found me with this
Phil visited us 2 January 2008 -- the photo reveals that he almost has a halo. Oddly, for me it is not a bad picture!
From Jim:
Mother-in-law's pictures
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimforest/sets/72157603780115420/
And the one of you with your almost-halo is here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimforest/3162104071/
All in all on the trip, the most confusing aspect is using the keyboards!!! for example on this one, to type a ( one must hold the shift key and hit the star key which is next to the key labeled with (
To type a ) hold the shift and hit the key with the its opposite which of ocurse is the (
LOST! To type ½ one must hold down the Clt and Alt keys and hit the key labeled 5 which has no indication for ½. The proprietor has been unable to demonstrate how to type the @ or Euro symbol!!
Ok. Cheers.
Tomorrow we fly home! Happy New Year all!
Laura, Jay (her fiancé), and I travelled to Europe the day after Christmas. Originally planned for June, we did our best given the shorter time window. Telling you about all the sites* you yourself have visited or heard about seems silly so below are several interesting people we met etc.
Highlights:
Brussels
Laura & Jay met several couples and individuals to hang out" with: Lebanese, French, and Aussies among others. We shared a table New Years Eve with an Aussie couple who just completed teaching in Thailand. I enjoyed seeing L & J have a New Years Eve experience with so many young people from around the world.
On the streets, it got a bit dicey. Seems the hooligan types have a tradition of chaos on the streets. Jay took pictures of people jumping from car to car in front of the Stock Exchange. Something ironic about that! I saw news broadcasts showing the extreme violence in Paris and Amsterdam - cars burning etc.
Bruges - A wonderful New Years dinner at Brasserie Chagall.
Amsterdam
Red Light District
Laura I took a walk near Amsterdam Centraal (train station) and the end of trams lines. I wondered aloud if we might we venturing into the Red Light District. Shortly the sex shops came into view. Laura had us make a hasty retreat! No place to be with your dad!!
By far our best accommodations were in Amsterdam, but then I have never paid so much for a room! Rooms are expensive and hard to find at New Years there. We both had large suites with great amenities.
Alkmaar - Jim and Nancy Forest
Wanting Laura and Jay to have an evening without dad, I had the opportunity to travel by train to a small town which is the cheese capitol, Alkmaar.
For me this was a wonderful evening. For those familiar with the Catholic worker and peace movement will recognize Jim's name. He knew well (often worked with) Dorothy Day, Thomas Merton, the Berrigans, Henri Nouwen, Dom Eudes, John Dear among others. Jim shared a story with us at dinner about how the British MI5 boarded a plane from Paris with pictures of Daniel Berrigan hoping to keep this dissident out of the country. You know how peaceful opposition is so threatening to those in power! Thinking ahead, Jim was on that plane. Daniel came on a later flight unimpeded!
When I arrived, Jim took me on a walking tour of Alkmaar. He is a great tour guide. What a way to meet good people and to obtain a sense of the local culture.
Nancy provided a feast for a king, Moussaka. At dinner, Nancy´s soon to be 93 year old mother joined us. I would never have known she was 93. She had lived with them for about 18 months. She paints regularly and is quite talented. (See website info below.)
Good heavens! I went online to find jim´s www. so I could include it. In persuing it quickly, I went to photos to find his mother in laws picture photos. Under friends I found me with this
Phil visited us 2 January 2008 -- the photo reveals that he almost has a halo. Oddly, for me it is not a bad picture!
From Jim:
Mother-in-law's pictures
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimforest/sets/72157603780115420/
And the one of you with your almost-halo is here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimforest/3162104071/
All in all on the trip, the most confusing aspect is using the keyboards!!! for example on this one, to type a ( one must hold the shift key and hit the star key which is next to the key labeled with (
To type a ) hold the shift and hit the key with the its opposite which of ocurse is the (
LOST! To type ½ one must hold down the Clt and Alt keys and hit the key labeled 5 which has no indication for ½. The proprietor has been unable to demonstrate how to type the @ or Euro symbol!!
Ok. Cheers.
Tomorrow we fly home! Happy New Year all!
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