A new Catholic Worker community has emerged in St. Louis. Its members are dedicated to living the Gospel through works of mercy, dialogue and resisting oppression.
Every Saturday morning, the St. Louis Catholic Worker house is filled with the smell of garlic, peppers, onions, spices and meat. Theo Kayser keeps watch over the stove, while Lindsey Myers shifts between the kitchen and the dining room to lay out the ingredients to be assembled into savory burritos by a small crew of volunteers.
The two planned to meet later that day with volunteers from Tent Mission STL to deliver the burritos to people living in encampments throughout St. Louis. Theo jumped in to help with grassroots organization several years ago, which was formed in the early days of the pandemic to deliver food and supplies to the unhoused.
People gathered for conversation and a potluck meal at the new St. Louis Catholic Worker house on June 15.
Those involved in the Catholic Worker movement, co-founded in 1933 by Peter Maurin and Servant of God Dorothy Day, understand that they cannot do everything or help everyone. Rather, through small works of mercy such as the burrito-making, they’re contributing to what Day described as an effort to “do all we can to lighten the sum total of suffering in this world.”
In the past year, Theo, Lindsey and another friend, Chrissy Kirchhoefer, began a new chapter in the St. Louis Catholic Worker movement by opening a hospitality house in the North Pointe neighborhood of St. Louis. It is the latest installment of more than half a dozen Catholic Worker communities that have existed in the St. Louis area since the 1930s.
“We’re making a commitment to work and plug in wherever we can,” said Chrissy, who has been associated with the Catholic Worker movement for more than two decades. “It’s about doing your part, and we realize that this is bigger than any of us.”
Guided by Catholic social teaching, Catholic Workers seek the common good by supporting several pillars, which were espoused by co-founders Day and Maurin: works of mercy, or mutual aid in which they share from their excess and receive in their needs through direct interaction with others; resistance, meaning to stand against oppression wherever it is found; and clarification of thought, to know where they are, how they got here and where they should be going.
Theo, Lindsey and Chrissy began exploring the idea of a new Catholic Worker community in late 2022. While searching for and closing on a house in the past year, the three have hosted potluck meals and discussions on topics such as war tax resistance; “Laudate Deum,” Pope Francis’ sequel document on the environment; racial justice; and the Church and labor.
There are hundreds of Catholic Worker houses — and some farms — around the world, but there is no headquarters or central office that deems someone a Catholic Worker, Theo said. Rather, its members say that they see their work as a way of life. For those who adequately feel called to the movement, they simply dig in and begin the work — no qualification necessary, he added.
“The Catholic Worker offers a revolution that will take all of us and lets us know that now is always the right time to begin taking steps, ‘by little and by little,’ as Dorothy Day would often quote,” Theo wrote in the group’s first newsletter.
Building community
At the Saturday morning burrito-making, Sarah and Dan Stout and their daughters, Jessie, 13, and Anna, 10, assembled ingredients and wrapped burritos in foil, which were transferred into a warm oven.
The Stouts attend St. Cronan Church in St. Louis, which has offered ongoing support to the St. Louis Catholic Worker house as it becomes established, such as donating supplies for the burritos. Sarah Stout said that their involvement has been a tangible way of responding to what she sees as a responsibility to care for the poor.
Giovanni Lauriello and St. Louis Catholic Worker Chrissy Kirchhoefer made burritos for people in need Sept. 10.
“We are all part of this world and are here to take care of one another,” she said. “We owe it to each other, and we have more than we need and owe that to each other to pass that along and take care of each other.”
Catholic Workers have found support from others in the community, including those previously associated with the movement in St. Louis and elsewhere. And they’re making connections with new people — Catholic and non-Catholic — who want to become involved.
“People have come to us because they’re trying to find that sense of identity as Catholics but also live that out in tangible ways,” Lindsey said. “We’ve also met others who have similar values, but don’t have the same faith background. There’s something powerful about seeing those identities come together and intersect.”
In August, the Catholic Workers welcomed their first guest, Franklin “Tino” González Díaz, who arrived in St. Louis from Colombia seeking asylum. They connected with him through Kevin Kuehl of the Immigrant and Refugee Ministry, a collaborative effort of six St. Louis parishes. Catholic Workers hope to expand the number of guests they can take in after making some additional repairs to the three-story, 120-year-old home.
It’s an example of the type of hospitality that Day encouraged — homes in urban communities that provide a place for people to stay, eat and receive spiritual guidance. She believed that offering hospitality to people in need was a biblical mandate and a way to give room to Christ.
In her 1945 essay, “Room for Christ,” she said: “It is no use to say that we are born 2,000 years too late to give room to Christ … giving shelter or food to anyone who asks for it, or needs it, is giving it to Christ.”
What you did for the least, you did for me
Catholic Workers take seriously Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 25, in which He instructs all to put the needs of the poor and vulnerable first and to see the dignity of every human being, Lindsey said. In the parable, Jesus reminds us: “Most certainly I tell you, because you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.”
That means the work doesn’t include only charitable acts, but also looking more closely at the underlying issues that cause human suffering, Lindsey added.
St. Louis Catholic Worker Theo Kayser, center, loaded homemade burritos for people in need with fellow Catholic Worker Lindsey Myers, right, and Stephanie Dickinson before going out for delivery Sept. 7.
“We’re called to be present to people and tend to that aid but also listen to the reasons why they’re suffering and resist those too,” she said. “Jesus fed people and healed people, He was poor among the people. But He also resisted … He saw the money changers in the temple and turned them over and questioned people of wealth.”
Jesus befriended others and became one with them in their poverty, and yet He didn’t deem who was deserving or not. Similarly, Catholic Workers are called to walk alongside others in their need without judging their worthiness, Lindsey said.
“People see others on the street who might be addicted and they say they’re undeserving,” she said. “But if we look at the speck in their eye, then we have to look at the log in our own. It starts with that prayer in ourselves that I am no better than the other. Everyone deserves to be fed and seen as a person — that’s what the Gospel calls us to.
“When we choose to live out the works of mercy, it is not that we care for those suffering as a means to see a divine or supernatural God in some spiritual sense,” Lindsey said. “By opening ourselves to those who suffer, we open ourselves to God — the God who died among thieves and fed the hungry and overturned the tables of money changers. It’s a beautiful mystery that to love God is to love our neighbor. The face of God is in each of us, and it’s a gift to uncover it.”
Living Catholic values, with a focus on sustainability
Tucked along a two-lane highway near Catawissa in Franklin County are eight acres of land that Ellen and Shane Hughes have been molding into a homestead over the past six years.
Inspired by their involvement with the Catholic Worker movement as college students, the two saw an opportunity to live their Catholic values, with a focus on developing agricultural and ecological sustainability practices.
In the past year, they’ve been leaning more toward Catholic Worker co-founder Peter Maurin’s concept of “agronomic universities” — communal farms where workers learn to work the land — and creating a space for community and hospitality.
Catholic Worker Ellen Hughes tended to chickens May 22 at Ozark Foothills Farm in rural Franklin County. Ellen runs the farm with her husband and fellow Catholic Worker Shane.
At the Ozark Foothills Farm, the Hughes are asking themselves some hefty questions: How can they be more in tune with justice, with the rhythms of the Earth and with the message of the Gospels?
It’s a slow but intentional process, Ellen said, as they create a way of life for them and their two children and share what they’ve learned with others.
“My goal is to slow down and to be attuned to the Holy Spirit and to not have to change and fix everything right away,” she said. “To just do things little by little is part of our philosophy.”
One of the first things they’ve tackled is the ecological restoration of their land, which previous landowners had modified over the years. On a practical level, they’ve worked on eliminating invasive plants and trees and replacing grass with native plants to create a more sustainable, eco-friendly environment that complements God’s creation.
Gardening is another major component. In addition to planting an expanding vegetable garden and various fruit trees and bushes, Shane is learning how to grow and harvest several varieties of grains, including rye, barley, wheat and oats, by hand.
“There came a point in time I was thinking, it’s fun growing garden vegetables, but where do we get most of our calories?” he said. “And it’s not tomatoes. How would we actually try to get ourselves outside of that food system? It’s trying to figure out, how do you grow wheat on a small human scale? There’s not that much information out there. So it’s been a lot of experimenting.”
The Hughes family prayed before breakfast on May 22 at Ozark Foothills Farm in rural Franklin County. The family members are parishioners at Our Lady Queen of Peace in House Springs.
Shane and Ellen are now sharing what they’ve learned through community days that they’ve hosted. They’ve connected with others through the Catholic Worker movement, but they also extend the invitation to anyone who wants to learn more about farm life and sustainable living.
One of the first gatherings they hosted last spring focused on crafting, farming and nature. Visitors were given tours of the property, and there was time for crafting — Ellen shared more about the art of fabric collaging (creating works of art using recycled scraps of fabric), while others brought their own projects to work on. She also demonstrated how to spin wool from the farm’s four angora rabbits using a 19th-century spinning wheel. The day included a shared meal — a taco bar featuring ingredients from their garden.
Their activities have led to plenty of conversations on faith. For example, growing grains has been a natural tie-in with the Eucharist, Ellen said.
“You think about it being the fruit of the earth and work of our hands — give us this day, our daily bread,” she said. “It’s the things that we hear about at church or even consume at church — you think, how is this actually made?”
Connecting with others has been an important part of the process, Shane said. “Specifically with the Catholic Worker community, it’s been getting in touch with some of these other people who are trying to engage in this kind of lifestyle and sharing what we’ve been doing and then seeing what they do,” he said.
There’s a beauty that they’ve discovered in the diversity of the Catholic Worker movement, he added. “It’s a movement — it’s not an organization,” he said. “There’s a lot of diversity in it, and (we’re) connecting with them to see what’s possible.”
History of Catholic Worker movement in St. Louis
Original house: In 1935, the first house of hospitality opened on Franklin Ave. near Grand. The following year, a coffee line was started and the workers moved to another house on West Pine, east of Grand to provide housing for the poor.
Karen House: Located at the former St. Liborius Parish convent, 1840 Hogan St. in St. Louis, it operated from 1977-2020. The house of hospitality was named after its first resident, Karen, and primarily served women and children. Karen House also served sandwiches and groceries to the community.
Cass House: Originally named the James Clemens Jr. House, it was located at 1849 Cass Ave. in St. Louis. The house was sold to the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet and then to the Vincentians in 1949. The house of hospitality ran a soupline and accommodated men and women and children in separate locations. The house was in the possession of Catholic Worker from 1979-87.
Ella Dixon House, located at 1540 N. 17th St. in St. Louis, a long-term housing facility. The “Little House” was a four-family flat that was given to the Catholic Worker by Ella Dixon, who was a parishioner at St. Liborius. It provided long-term housing for younger people from about 1980 until 2022.
Dorothy Day Co-Housing Community: An intentional community of multiple households and residences created by former residents of Karen House, which operated from 2000 until 2005. The aim was to provide support and solidarity to each other by sharing meals, childcare and other day-to-day activities of life.
Kabat House: Named after Father Carl Kabat, a priest of the Missionary Oblates of Mary whose life was dedicated to anti-nuclear protests. The Catholic Worker house was primarily focused on anti-war resistance, especially with the wars emerging in Afghanistan and Iraq. Later, the house expanded its focus to provide hospitality to primarily non-English speakers. It operated from 2001 until 2018.
St. Louis Catholic Worker
Facebook: @stlcatholicworker | Instagram: @stlcw
Email: StLouisCatholicWorker@gmail.com
Ozark Foothills Farm
catholicworker.org/directory/ozark-foothills-farm/
Instagram: @ozarkfoothills
Pillars of the Catholic Worker Movement
Works of mercy
Resistance
Clarification of thought
