Dorothy Day (1897–1980)

I spent much of the time during which I was reading The Duty of Delight actually considering the function and readership of the book. The editor, Robert Ellsberg, writes in the introduction that he eliminated many of Dorothy's diary entries that seemed to contribute less to the overall reading, but still much remains: almost 700 pages, spanning 40 years of Dorothy's life and work. It is not a work meant to be read through cover to cover, I don't believe.

Instead, it might be helpful in a show more contemplative sense, to flip through and read what strikes the reader. Dorothy's diary entries trace both social and spiritual development, to the point where they often mutually inform one another. "We certainly live in no ivory tower," she writes in July of 1969. "If there are any problems that our readers write to us about, we have them too. What is hard is that they envision us as a beloved community, a group of Christians. Like the early Christians, so devoted, so peaceful, that people can point to us and say, 'See how they love one another.'"

Whether Dorothy felt that her community lived up to these idealizations, it is apparent to readers how extraordinary the work of the Catholic Workers was, even moreso because there seemed to be such an impression among them that their actions were ordinary and expected of them. They offered hundreds of thousands of nights of lodging and millions of meals, yet Dorothy calculates these totals quite dispassionately. She didn't see herself as a manager nor an iconic figure - though she must have known the significance with which others accorded her - but only an actor of God's work. It's fascinating to flip through her thoughts, and Robert Ellsberg has done incredible editorial work, with an index and extensive footnotes on figures and events of Dorothy's life to further explain some of her entries. show less

Summary: A collection of Dorothy Day's writings on following Jesus in the ways of faith, love, prayer, life, and community.

One thinks of Dorothy Day as an activist writer and advocate for the poor, running homes of hospitality, communes, and getting arrested even in her seventies. What is less apparent is the deep spirituality that sustained her activism. This book, one of Plough's Spiritual Guides, distills writings from her different books that cumulatively describe the ordinary life of show more following Jesus among the poor.

The excerpts are organized around five "ways" or themes: of faith, of love, of prayer, of life, and of community.

In the chapters on faith, we encounter both her implicit belief in the mysteries of the faith and the sacraments, and yet her struggle to trust and depend in the welter of daily interactions and work. She writes,

"I suppose it is a grace not to be able to have time to take or derive satisfaction in the work we are doing. In what time I have, my impulse is to self-criticism and examination of conscience, and I am constantly humiliated at my own imperfections and at my halting progress. Perhaps I deceive myself here, too, and excuse my lack of recollection. But I do know how small I am and how little I can do and I beg you, Lord, to help me, for I cannot help myself" (pp. 14-15).

Often, Day's reflections come with pithy challenges. We see the intensity of her love for God and the wonder that God sets his love on the likes of us and then observes, "It is a terrible thought--'we love God as much as the one we love the least' " (p.36). Or she surprises us with her breaks with convention such as when she writes on prayer: "I do not have to retire to my room to pray. It is enough to get out and walk in the wilderness of the streets" (p. 44).

"The way of life" reminds us "never to get discouraged at the slowness of people or results" (p. 63). She writes of deepening perceptions of unworldly justice that does not seek its own, that for a Christian social order, "we must first have Christians" (p.66), and how, apart from the light of Christ, we often do not know ourselves or our secret sins. She writes at length on the indispensable role of suffering in our lives.

The final portion focuses on life in community. Day writes of efforts in community with grittiness and realism. Disappointments. Betrayals. Plain hard work and long hours. Yet even so, she longs for bigger houses, more room for discussions, a library, "a Christ room." She recognizes desperately her need for the presence of God in all the ordinary places. In the end, it is community that addresses our desolation. She concludes, "We have all known the long loneliness and we have learned that the only solution is love and that love comes with community" (p. 120).

This is the second book in the Spiritual Guides series I've reviewed, the earlier being The Scandal of Redemption by Oscar Romero. These are small books only in size. Each is well-edited by Carolyn Kurtz. This, in particular, required culling passages from a number of Day's works along each of the themes into coherent chapters. Eye-catching cover art, end papers, and typography make these delightful books to hold and read.

I found myself often mulling over a single line, such as this one: "We have the greatest weapons in the world, greater than any hydrogen or atom bomb, and they are the weapons of poverty and prayer, fasting and alms, the reckless spending of ourselves in God's service and for his poor" (p.69). I mused again and again what a different face Christians would present to the world if we lived as Day did rather than jockeying for positions and influence and concealing our flawed character rather than exposing it to the grace of God. Reading Day gives me hope that ordinary Christians with all our flaws and struggles may yet walk the ways of faith, hope, and love, offering something beautiful for God and to the world.

____________________________

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. show less

I have always been fascinated by Dorothy Day, so I must say that right away. Her strength of character and unrelenting fight for what she believed in are both to be admired. In addition, she was so intelligent and well-read, and she lived quite a life both before and after her conversion to Catholicism.

With all that said, I loved this collection of her edited diaries and would have continued to read as long as there was more. I missed her when I finally finished. At almost 700 pages, you show more would have thought I would have been tired of her, but no. With the writings starting in the 1930's and continuing to 1980, the year she died, the book really does give views of her during different eras, while also showing the overarching themes of her life. She lived through incredible times in this country and the world, but stayed consistent in her goals and core values.

Dorothy Day was an advocate of helping her fellow men and women as a way of showing her love for Jesus. She also believed that Jesus' teaching to turn the other cheek was an admonition to be completely pacifistic in all of our dealings with others, as well as our country's dealings with other nations. She believed "the coat in your closet belongs to your neighbor" and "we love God as much as the person we love the least". Her writings detailed these beliefs as well as her actions upholding them all. She attended daily Mass for strength and sustenance, and mourned when she could not go.

I am better for having read this book and will keep it to turn back to time and time again. 4 million stars!!!!! show less

This book wasn't so much a collection of uplifting thoughts as an almost diaristic collection of excerpts from Dorothy Day's writing and letters, I believe including actual diary excerpts in some instances. I knew going in that Dorothy Day was a Catholic social activist, possibly controversial in the church. What the book presents is a portrait of a woman who spent her life trying to do good, and the personal struggles she experienced within, including examination of her reasons for doing show more so. It was a portrait of how it isn't always easy to help others, and it certainly wouldn't be easy to make it your life's work. Some of the writings were about how you wish that people would react differently, more appreciative, making more of your efforts, and some were about how she recognized that as a flaw in herself. Sometimes, reading, I thought that she should have been more compassionate towards someone, or more humble, and yet she devoted her entire life to helping people, and I haven't, and it made me think of the internal struggles that might cause you, as you strove to live out that sort of life. It isn't an easy collection you can dip into when you need to be uplifted, but it is a thought-provoking book about what living a Christian life can really mean. show less