We are sowing the seeds of love, and we are not living in the harvest time.
-Dorothy Day, Commonweal 1949
Greetings Friends of St. Bakhita Catholic Worker Community,
Dorothy Day’s quote above has briefly taken on new meaning for us in the St. Bakhita community. Due the recent surge of the Omicron variant and to timing issues we have made the difficult decision to reschedule our Open House that was set for February 8th, the Feast Day of St. Bakhita. We really wanted to honor this great Saint on that day, but be assured that we will weave her life witness into the fabric of our very existence. In search of a safe and meaningful new date to schedule our open house, we are now inviting you to attend our rescheduled St. Bakhita Catholic Worker Open House the afternoon of Sunday, May 1st from 11:00-2:00pm. We are excited, as this is the Feast Day of St. Joseph the Worker and the birthday of the Catholic Worker Movement. Bishop Jeff Haines will join us in blessing our chapel that day!
Behind the scenes we are working hard to gather the resources we need to launch St. Bakhita House. The Divine Savior Holy Angels High School community, in concert with multiple vendors, held a beautiful Advent mission on our behalf and generously donated funds and household items to our home. Just prior to Christmas we received a badly needed donation of chapel chairs generously donated by the School Sisters of Notre Dame. During November and December we had a remarkable outpouring of individual support from those interested in supporting our mission. We have also been blessed with invites to share our mission with various school, parish and religious groups. This includes the OSF’s, Divine Savior Holy Angels, Blessed Sacrament in Madison, Our Lady of Lourdes, and we have a couple of other invites in the works. . We are so very grateful to be supported by so many people of good will and we hold all these generous individuals and communities in our prayers.
Part of our mission is rooted in the deep belief that every person deserves the dignity of housing stability. As Pope Francis unequivocally declared after his address to Congress in 2015, “Let me be clear. There is no social or moral justification, no justification whatsoever, for the lack of housing.” Thank you for all you do to answer this call as we move toward opening space for women in need. As we move past this awful pandemic, you will be able to visit us and witness the beginnings of a loving community of hospitality dedicated to learning, growing, and living the Gospel call to put faith into action.
On a practical note, we will be posting house needs to our website in the very near future. We would greatly appreciate any help you feel inclined to offer. Thank you for being a part of St. Bakhita Catholic Worker Community.
And please remember to SAVE THE DATE:May 1, 2022 for the St. Bakhita Catholic Worker Open House!
Blessings and peace,
