Dorothy Day Catholic Worker Celebrates 30th Anniversary!

Friday, Dec 16th Dorothy Day Catholic Worker had a celebration and a mass presided by Bishop Gumbleton to mark their 30 year anniversary. It was a joyful occasion filled with friends, stories, laughter and song. Thanks to everyone for making it a night to remember! Click here to read more and view pictures from the event.

Please click here to view our 30th Anniversary Invitation . 

Published in: on November 17, 2011 at 2:37 pm  Comments (3)  

Save the dates: Dec 2011

VIGIL & RALLY FOR PFC BRADLEY!

After 560 days of pretrial confinement, including 250 days spent in solitary conditions, the Military has finally announced that PFC Bradley Manning’s Pretrial Hearing will begin on December 16th, 2011. PFC Bradley Manning is accused of uncovering the facts behind a system of foreign policy that routinely hides abuse from public scrutiny. “If convicted of all charges, Manning would face a maximum punishment… of confinement for life”.
Fort Meade Main Gate
Maryland 175 & Reece Rd
Fort Meade, MD 21113 (map)

Rally for Bradley at Fort Meade leaflet PDF

VIGIL (or attend the hearing) Friday, Dec 16th, 8am to 5pm

RALLY & MARCH Saturday, Dec 17th, Noon to 3pm

The Fort Meade Main Gate is located in Odenton, Maryland, 25 miles northeast of Washington DC, between Washington DC and Baltimore, Maryland.

Please visit www.bradleymanning.org  for more info.

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Join Us For A Faith And Resistance Retreat: FEAST OF THE MASSACRE OF THE INNOCENTS DEC 27-30, 2011 

Let All The World’s Children Live… Remember The Massacred Children… And Create The Beloved Community In A Disarmed World.

  For more info, please call Dorothy Day CW at 202.882.9649 or Jonah House at 410.233.6238

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Report on the Holy Innocents Faith and Resistance Retreat in Washington, D.C. by Art Laffin

 Focusing on the theme: LET ALL THE WORLD’S CHILDREN LIVE–REMEMBER THE MASSACRED CHILDREN AND CREATE THE BELOVED COMMUNITY IN A DISARMED WORLD, over 60 people from the Atlantic and Southern Life Communities, and the New Jerusalem Community in Philadelphia, gathered in Washington, D.C. from December 27-30 for the annual Holy Innocents Faith and Resistance retreat. The retreat included a moving ritual on the theme of the retreat, several compelling panels with parents and children reflecting on their experience living in Catholic Worker and resistance communities,  prayerful reflection and liturgy,  three nonviolent actions, and a spirited talent show. On December 28, the feast commemorating the slaughter of the holy innocents in Bethlehem ordered by King Herod, the community held an early morning witness outside the Pentagon metro entrance. Displaying a small mock drone warplane, eleven people staged a “die-in” to represent children and numerous others who have been murdered by U.S. Drone attacks in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen and elsewhere. They were arrested and charged with failure to obey a lawful order and releasedseveral hours later with a February 17 court date.*  Following the arrests, as hundreds of military and civilian workers streamed into the Pentagon, the remainder of the community held a prayer service in the fenced-off area outside the Pentagon metro known as the “free speech” or “protest zone.” 

On December 29, the community held a noon-time witness in front of the White House. Using the “mic-check”  form of speaking that is practiced by the Occupy Movement, the witness included a reading of the massacre of the holy innocents (Mt. 2: 13-18), an account of how U.S. Drone warplanes are murdering innocents today, a “die-in” using a mock drone warplane, an offering of peace, justice and nonviolence resolutions for the New Year, and a creative spirit-led dance with people singing “Down By the Riverside.” This same action was repeated again on December 30 at the White House with one addition. Toward the end of the witness, streamers with statements of how Drones can be transformed to serve life were placed on the mock drone warplane by adults and children. The retreat concluded with a closing circle at the anti-nuclear/anti-war vigil site across from the White House that was started by the late William Thomas and where Conception has vigiled for the last thirty years. Let us continue to pray with and for each other in this New Year as we conspire to create the Beloved Community. For with God and each other all things are possible!

  *Those arrested at the Pentagon were:
Bill Frankel-Streit, Little Flower Catholic Worker in Virginia
Amber Mason, Dorothy Day Catholic Worker
Kevin Mason, Dorothy Day Catholic Worker
 Kathy Boylan, Dorothy Day Catholic Worker
Clare Grady, Ithaca Catholic Worker
Marie Grady-DeMott, Ithaca Catholic Worker
Steve Woolford, Silk Hope (N.C.) Catholic Worker
 Liz McAlister, Jonah House
Sr. Margaret McKenna, New Jerusalem Community
Rosemary Thompson, Baltimore peace activist
Joan Wages, Peace activist from Central Virginia
Published in: on November 7, 2011 at 8:36 pm  Leave a Comment  

“Resistance for the Long Haul” presented by Sr. Carol Gilbert & Sr. Ardeth Platte

Join us tomorrow, Friday Nov. 4th @ 7:30pm, for our monthly Clarification of Thought event. The theme will be “Resistance for the Long Haul” with Guest Speakers Sr. Ardeth Platte and Sr. Carol Gilbert of Jonah House of Baltimore, MD.  Click here to learn more!

Published in: on November 3, 2011 at 5:24 pm  Leave a Comment  

DC Caravan to Close the SOA! November 18-20, 2011


Haven’t made plans to come to Columbus, GA for the SOA Watch Vigil? JOIN THE DC CARAVAN! This will be a great opportunity to connect with local organizers and build community before even getting to the big events in GA.

The van(s) will leave DC on Friday November 18th, around 6pm and return after the events on Sunday (usually ending around 2pm). Each person will pay around $115 round trip, and **solidarity prices** are encouraged! note: this just covers transportation, each person is responsible for their lodging in Georgia (although we recommend room shares to help cover the costs).

Please contact Amanda at amanda.r.jordan@gmail.com for more info.
Deadline to reserve your spot on the van is Tuesday, November 8th.

**Solidarity Prices refer to someone paying a little bit extra to cover someone who might not be able to pay the full amount!**

Published in: on November 2, 2011 at 9:23 pm  Leave a Comment  

Call to Action November 6th: Stop the Kestone XL Pipeline!

Join us at the White House this Sunday, November 6 at 2 p.m. (1:30 for live music) We are gathering to tell President Obama to stop construction of the Keystone XL transnational pipeline, as it threatens America’s fresh water supply, endangers poor and rural communities, jeopardizes food security, and derails any attempt at a green energy future.

In August, more than 1,200 people were arrested protesting the controversial 1,700-mile Keystone XL tar sands oil pipeline. TransCanada, the corporation that would build it, is responsible for 12 oil spills in the United States during 2011. According to NASA scientist James Hansen, “Exploitation of tar sands would make it implausible to stabilize the climate and avoid disastrous global climate impacts.”

Over 4,000 people have already signed up to join the November 6 action, which means we have an opportunity to send a decisive message to the president. With scandals around Keystone XL brewing, and momentum shifting in our direction, we need to make this action as big as possible. We are not planning on arrests, which means everyone can participate. The starting time is approximately 2 p.m. at Lafayette Park. We hope to see you there!

If you cannot be there in person, please consider calling the White House to tell President Obama to shut down the Keystone Pipeline project. 202-456-1111

Visit www.tarsandsaction.org for more info.

Published in: on November 2, 2011 at 9:16 pm  Leave a Comment