Religious Persecution

As the news from Tibet and China is increasingly disturbing and ever more difficul to ascertain and understand, Dorothy's words about 1930s Spain urge us to cling to nonviolence and Love as the only way to attain peace.

We all know that there is a frightful persecution of religion in Spain. Churches have been destroyed and desecrated, priests and nuns have been tortured and murdered in great numbers.

In the light of this fact it is inconceivably difficult to write as we do. It is folly—--it seems madness—--to say as we do, —"we are opposed to the use of force as a means of settling personal, national, or international disputes. As a newspaper trying to effect public opinion, we take this stand. We feel that if the press and the public throughout the world do not speak in terms of the counsels of perfection, who else will?

We pray those martyrs of Spain to help us, to pray for us, to guide us in the stand we take. We speak in their name. Their blood cries out against the shedding of more blood to wash out theirs. Their blood cries out against a spirit of hatred and savagery which aims towards a peace founded upon victory, at the price of resentment and hatred enduring for years to come. Do you suppose they died, saying grimly—, "Alright, —we accept martyrdom; —we will not lift the sword to defend ourselves but the lay troops will avenge us!" This would be martyrdom wasted. Blood spilled in vain. Or rather did they say with St. Stephen, "Father, forgive them," and pray with love for their conversion? And did they not rather pray, when the light of Christ burst upon them, that love would overcome hatred, that men dying for faith, rather than killing for their faith, would save the world?

- Originally published as "Explains CW Stand on Use of Force" by Dorothy Day,
The Catholic Worker, September 1938, 1, 4, 7. Available in full (DOC #216) at the Dorothy Day Library on the Web at http://www.catholicworker.org/dorothyday/