Recently there have been numerous postings and articles about Dan Berrigan, the Jesuit priest who stood up for justice and peace many times during his lifetime. April 30th, 2021 was the 5th anniversary of his death and May 9th, 2021 would have been his 100th Birthday. As a result, many who knew Dan or people who looked up to his actions or values have found ways to commemorate these dates. On Saturday, May 8th, I'll be participating in a Zoom event hosted by John Dear from his Beatitudes Center, "Celebrating Dan Berrigan's 100th Birthday".
Jim Forest, author of "At Play In The Lions Den, a Biography and Memoir of Dan Berrigan", has also written much about Dan recently. Jim and Dan had a close relationship based on their involvement in the founding the Catholic Peace Fellowship in the 60's. Jim's insights are important and impressive and anyone interested in learning more about Dan would be well served by reading Jim's biography.
I knew Dan from my involvement at the Catholic Worker in New York City in the mid 60's. Dan was a frequent visitor to the Catholic Worker at that time participating in Friday Night Meetings, performing Liturgies or visiting with Dorothy Day and everyone else at St. Joseph's House of Hospitality. Dan, like most of us, was evolving during that period of his life. He was being affected by the war in Vietnam, racial injustices and poverty. He was counseling young men about the draft and promoting conscientious objection as a legitimate Catholic response to war. At the same time he was being affected by young people, men and women, who were already making decisions about the war and resistance to it. He was, I think, challenged by the difference between talking about resistance and actually resisting.
When the Catholic Worker became involved in draft card burning, initially by one of Dan's students, David Miller and then at Union Square in 1965, through the involvement of Dorothy Day, Tom Cornell and myself, Dan was watching closely. He was understanding the significance of the events and supporting them but also like many, wondering where would they lead.
A few days after the draft card burning at Union Square, another young man associated with the Catholic Worker, Roger LaPorte, walked to the UN with a gallon or so of gasoline and set himself on fire. Roger made statements about being a Catholic Worker and being against war, all war. Roger died a few days later. There are lots of stories about Dan's involvement with all of these events. Here's what I know. Both Dorothy Day and Dan Berrigan were concerned about the impact of Roger's action and death on young people broadly and specifically on the young people at the Worker. There were some within and outside of the Worker who wanted to quickly condemn Roger's action. Both Dorothy and Dan, separately, knew that life and this death were more complicated than that. Dorothy struggled with public perceptions and Dan worried about that close knit community of young people that he had come to know.
I was a part of the group of young folks who were impacted by all of this. We didn't like the way statements were being made about Roger and his action. We didn't like the media circus that naturally ensues when something as significant as this happens. We were struggling ourselves with Roger's frustration about protests, draft card burnings and their ineffectiveness against the war. We were of course a community, 10 or 12 of us brought together by our relationship with the Catholic Worker. When Roger passed, we got together for our own private response, a memorial that evolved into a Liturgy. Dan came to participate. We shared bread and wine. We prayed and remembered Roger. Dan became our pastor and blessed the gifts. He said some comforting words. We hugged and cried. Much has been made about this event. I have no doubt that it was a direct reason for Dan being assigned out of the country to South America and basically silenced for his opposition to war and violence. But it certainly wasn't as formal as some have implied.
Dan and his brother Phil were influenced by all of this and went on to become leaders of the Plowshares movement in opposition to nuclear weapons of mass destruction. They both wrote and talked about the influence of these early events and their own evolution as leaders in the resistance movement.
Some of what all of these discussions and remembrances of Dan reminds me of is his love of and constant searching for community. Actually, he made it seem very easy. He found community in small groups of friends, large demonstrations or gatherings, or with just one other human being. He thrived on community and was constantly seeking it out and in the process making everyone else comfortable in finding it. But he also enjoyed the search and the reach. He would go to every corner of society to find community and that's where the Eucharist would take place and everyone, but especially Dan, would enjoy it. Happy 100th Dan. Rest in Power!
