“Can there be a Just War in our Time?”1

The Catholic Worker Movement’s Stand for Absolute Pacifism during the Spanish Civil War

By Stephen K. Kwas

Junior Paper

Word Count: 2483

1 Donald Attwater "Can There Be a Just War in Our Time?” The Catholic Worker, February 1939 [Microfilm].

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“The Catholic Worker is sincerely a pacifist paper. We oppose class war and

class hatred, even while we stand opposed to injustice and greed. Our fight is not ‘with

flesh and blood but principalities and powers.’”2 This self-assessment by The Catholic

Worker reflected its neutral position with regard to the Spanish Civil War, a problematic

position because the Catholic Church supported one side, the Nationalists, in the conflict.

As a result, this one-cent newspaper made history in its first six years because it was the

first Catholic newspaper in American history to have a theory of absolute pacifism. This

essay will focus on the Catholic Worker Movement’s response to The Spanish Civil War

through its newspaper, The Catholic Worker. In doing so it will address the question:

How did The Catholic Worker convince its readers that pacifism was the true Christian

response to this conflict? It argues that the Catholic Worker Movement rejected the Just

War Theory and instead accepted a theory of absolute pacifism based on the Councils of

Perfection and the Sermon on the Mount. To support this thesis, this essay will first

describe the founding and philosophy of the Catholic Worker Movement, then explore

the context of the Spanish Civil War. The bulk of the paper will address how the

Catholic Worker Movement reacted to The Spanish Civil War by adopting a stand of

absolute pacifism. Lastly, this essay will briefly outline the effects of this stand.

Dorothy Day founded the Catholic Worker Movement, autonomous communities

of Catholics devoted to service to the poor, in 1933. As a young woman, Day was drawn

to radical movements in part because she believed that many Christians would pray but

not do acts of kindness. She found this very hypocritical because such Christians

preferred comfort to loving their neighbors. This hypocrisy made her identify with the

2 The Catholic Worker, "Pacifism," The Catholic Worker, May 1936. [Microfilm].

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radical movement of socialism.3 This socialism helped complement the Catholic ideas of

personalism and distributionalism upon which the Catholic Worker Movement was

founded. A Personalist believes in a special dignity in man and recognizes that man, as

God’s creature, is the most important feature of any society. Distributism is the idea that

the ownership of the means of production should be as widespread as possible rather than

being concentrated in the hands of a few, as it is in capitalism, or in the hands of state

bureaucrats, as it is in socialism.4

Although the Catholic Worker Movement was located in the United States, it also

focused on world events. Its first major stand involved the Spanish Civil War. Spain

had a long history of monarchial governments, but in 1931 Spain became a republic

through the abdication of King Alfonso XIII. This republic, which was dominated by

socialists, was persecuting Catholics by forming oppressive laws such as seizing church

property and closing many Catholic schools. Socialists were able to secure a majority of

seats in the new republic’s congress. Many people feared socialism because they worried

it would lead to a form of communism. General Francisco Franco, a nationalist with

fascistic leanings, led a revolt against the republicans. In 1936 he declared war against

the republicans.5 This led to The Spanish Civil War, a militaristic revolt by then

nationalists, against the Spanish government. The republicans found support from

communist sympathizers within Spain as well as the Soviet Union, while the nationalists

3 Anne Kjlegiment, “The Spirituality of Dorothy Day’s Pacifism,” U.S. Catholic Historian, 27, no. 2, (Spring 2009), 3.4 Richard Aleman, "About the Distributist Review," The Distributist Review. http://distributistreview.com/about/. 5 Christopher Zehnder et al, Light to Nations: The Making of the Modern World. 570

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were supported by fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. The United States, France, and Great

Britain were essentially neutral. 6

“For more than three months brothers have been killing one another in the fields

of Spain.”7 The Catholic Worker’s view on The Spanish Civil War, as expressed in this

quote, was that neither side was justified because murder could never be justified. This

idea led them to have a neutral, non-violent stand during the civil war. The Catholic

Worker became the first consistent voice in American Catholicism to promote pacifism.8

It did this by applying the Councils of Perfection in their most radical form to all

Catholics.9 These councils refer to poverty, chastity, and obedience. To illustrate this, in

its most radical form poverty prohibits monks from becoming soldiers. Another way that

The Catholic Worker’s was influenced by poverty was The Sermon on the Mount

especially “blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God” and

“turn the other cheek.” The Catholic Worker’s pacifism, and its stand, was therefore

rooted in Catholic spirituality.10 This non-violence led The Catholic Worker Movement to

have a neutral view of the Spanish Civil War.11

The Catholic Worker justified their neutral stand by appealing to an idea of

Christian freedom. To do this, they published an article by French theologian and

6 James D'Olley, ed, "Spanish Civil War," Encyclopædia Britannica. Last modified July 20, 1998. Accessed September 2, 2016. https://www.britannica.com/event/Spanish-Civil-War. 7 Emmanuel Mounier, "Spanish Catholic Flays Both Sides!" The Catholic Worker, December 1936. [Microfilm].8 Stephen T. Krupa, S.J. "American Myth and the Gospel: Manifest Destiny and Dorothy Day’s Nonviolence," In Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker Movement, edited by William J. Thorn, Phillip M. Runkel, and Susan Mountin, 184-96. 9 John L. LeBrun, "The Way of Love: Pacifism and the Catholic Worker Movement, 1933-1939," In Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker Movement, edited by William J. Thorn, Phillip M. Runkel, and Susan Mountin, 445-56. 10 Charles Chatfield, "The Catholic Worker in the United States Peace Tradition," In American Catholic Pacifism: The Influence of Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker Movement, edited by Anne Klejment and Nancy L. Roberts, 1-12. 11 Ibid, 7

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personalist Emanuel Mounier who argued: “To take sides under these circumstances

would be for me to renounce in some manner this independence which is the mark of the

Christian in his power over the world. It would also permit me to be led by people who

have unpardonably lost their reason in their ocean of their passions.”12 The Catholic

Worker felt that if they were to take sides, then Franco or the republicans who were

controlled by their selfish desires would lead them.

The Vatican, who adhered to the doctrine of “Just War,” did not share this idea of

pacifism, however. Just War Theory is the basis on which nations seek to legally and

morally justify going to war. The criteria (see Appendix), which the Vatican used to

justify wars, were based on St. Thomas Aquinas’ works.13 The way that the Catholic

Worker’s neutral stand during The Spanish Civil War differed from the Catholic

Church’s stand was that the Catholic Church was in support of the nationalists in the

Spanish revolution because they saw them as defending Catholicism. Therefore, any

Catholic press that did not support the Nationalists was seen as against Catholicism.14

The Catholic Worker Movement opposed the Just War Theory because

unscrupulous leaders used it to justify war by the State and could never interpret Jesus’

teachings on war. 15 The Catholic Worker was not against the Church, or even the Just

war Theory, but they believed that modern war could never be justified using it; since

modern war could not be justified under the Just War Theory, a pacifist stand would be in

order.16

12 Emmanuel Mounier, "Spanish Catholic Flays Both Sides!" The Catholic Worker, December 1936.13 Jon Dorbolo, "Just War Theory," Oregon State University, Last modified 2001. http://oregonstate.edu/ instruct/phl201/modules/just_war_theory/criteria_intro.html. 14 LeBrun, 45115 Ibid, 45016 Ibid, 452

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The Catholic Worker strongly disagreed with the idea that modern wars could be

justified because killing, which occurs out of hate and self-interest, can never coincide

with Jesus’ teachings of loving one’s neighbor and because bombings and other methods,

which harm innocent civilians, were frequent a modern wars.17 To add to that, it argued

that war was just a means of economic and political gain.18 The Catholic Worker even

went as far to say that all wars were unjust because it thought that war was, in its essence,

secular and profane.19

Even though The Catholic Worker did not agree with Just War theory it proved

that the Spanish Civil War was not a just war because it did not satisfy all of the aspects

of The Just War Theory. To add to that, The Catholic Worker argued that both sides were

against Christ’s message because to murder in the name of Christ, which is what the

fascists did, and to burn down churches and holy images, which is what the communists

did, is not what Christ taught.20

Non-violence, the belief that all violence is immoral, was one of the most radical

stances that The Catholic Worker had because many people, both Christians and non-

Christians, supported direct intervention in the war. Day believed that one’s beliefs of

peace and war must not come from an idea of patriotism but instead must come from

what the gospel and Church tradition teach. Day argued, “We are against war because it

is contrary to the Spirit of Jesus Christ.” 21

17Donald Attwater, "Can There Be a Just War in Our Time?” The Catholic Worker, February 1939 [Microfilm].18 Krupa, 194.19 Jacques M. Maritain, "Maritain on Spain." The Catholic Worker, November 1937. [Microfilm].20 Ibid21 Mark Zwick, and Louise Zwick. The Catholic Worker Movement: Intellectual and Spiritual Origins, 255.

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This stand was very revolutionary because organized peace activity in the

American Catholic Church was almost non-existent in the United States before The

Catholic Worker Movement began. For example, during World War I there were only

four Catholic conscientious objectors recorded. When The Catholic Worker Movement

was started, there was no organized Catholic anti-war movement in the United States.22

An important moment for this stand occurred in December, 1936 when The

Catholic Worker published an article written by Mounier in Esprit, a French Magazine.

They published this article because it expressed The Catholic Worker’s stance on the war.

In it, they stated that they would receive criticism from both sides because of this stand.

Even though they will receive criticism, they argued that it is the stand of peace and

therefore the stand of Christ. The Catholic Worker thought that its stand “sends forth an

affirmative sound of values which seems to us loftier, and unknown.” Mounier argued

that the civil war was not justified because the situation had not reached a point where

peaceful actions could be used. Lastly, he criticized Catholics who thought that their

patriotism (going to war) excluded them from the fifth commandment, “Thou shalt not

kill.” 23 Therefore, he (and the Catholic Worker) they felt that the civil war was the

opposite of a holy war, because many citizens were murdering other citizens, which was

a violation of the fifth commandment.

In a later article, The Catholic Worker stated that both sides in the Spanish Civil

War performed rights and wrongs and therefore neither of them could be condemned nor

praised. It argued that the main problem of the war is that members of Christ kill each

22 Mel Piehl, Breaking Bread: The Catholic Worker and the Origin of Catholic Radicalism in America, 189.23 Emmanuel Mounier, "Spanish Catholic Flays Both Sides!" The Catholic Worker, December 1936. [Microfilm].

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other because of their nationalism, not because of the communism or the fascism. Instead

of giving hatred for one side and publicity for the other side, The Catholic Worker said

that Spain needs prayers of peace. “The Catholic Worker makes this appeal to its readers.

Forget your anger. Let your indignation die. Remember only that the body is being rest

asunder, and the only solution is love. Let’s show ours by humbly praying the Source of

Love that He intervene in the cause of the body of which He is the Head.”24

The Catholic Worker said that during the Spanish Civil War, the Fascists were

folding up the true cross by “deforming the sign of salvation in order to turn it into a sign

of oppression.” It said this because the fascists were killing for their regime under the

name of Jesus and this was the opposite of what Jesus taught.25 The Catholic Worker

expressed why they could neither support Franco nor the communists by saying; “We

reject the fallacious dilemma, the stupid dilemma ‘Fascism or Communism,’ exactly

because the opposition of the Christian to those two regimes is founded on identical

reasons. Fascist totalitarianism ignores the human person, corrupts the spiritual in it,

mechanizes thought by an obligatory uniformity which it imposes as a condition for

expression, covers under dictatorship, with no recourse, all kinds of injustices, and a

world organized to favor exploitation by profiteers.” What this means is that both fascism

and communism are the same in certain ways that are very unethical.26

The Catholic Worker criticized the civil war by stating that the rich were

supporting the murder of men financially and that The Catholic Worker said that civil

24 The Catholic Worker, "The Mystical Body and Spain." The Catholic Worker, September 1936. [Microfilm].25 Jacques Maritain, "Spanish Catholic Speaks Out." The Catholic Worker, December 1936. [Microfilm].26 Ibid

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peace is the true way for Christians to be freed from Communism or Fascism, not war or

other violent means. 27

The Catholic Worker’s pacifist and neutral position on the war harmed them, for

they lost many of their protestant and secular left supporters. Not only did they lose

liberal supporters, they also lost many Catholic supporters.28 The fact that they lost many

supporters shows how dedicated it was to a counter-cultural message of pacifism and

neighborly love. It also shows an exceptionalism among Catholic organizations. It shows

this because even when they lost subscriptions, they continued their stand. An example of

this involves the fate of another Catholic news organization called Commonweal that did

not support Franco at first, and then lost many subscriptions. Pro nationalist Catholics

pressured it to support Franco, which it did.29

The Catholic Worker continued its pacifism after the civil war. For example, after

the bombing of Pearl Harbor, many of those who had been against a possible war with

Japan, now supported it. Even some writers for The Catholic Worker jumped on board,

but Day insisted that its pacifist stand continue. The Catholic Worker’s continued non-

violence made its circulation drop immensely and many Catholic Worker hospitality

houses were closed.30 Another example is how Dorothy Day went to Congress to testify

against the idea of conscription.31

The Catholic Worker had an immense impact on pacifism among Catholics. This

is because of its pacifist stand during the Spanish Civil War. Because of this, it is the

27 Ibid28 LeBrun29 David J Valaik, "American Catholic Dissenters and the Spanish Civil War." The Catholic Historical Review 53, no. 4 (January 1968): 540-41. 30 Zwick31 Robert Ellsberg, The Duty of Delight.

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most responsible for the shift to pacifism among Catholics and is the most recognized

U.S. Catholic pacifist organization.32

32 Patricia McNeal. "Dorothy Day: Origins of Catholic Pacifism." Mid-America 74, no. 2 (April 1992): 149-69.

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Appendix

Conditions for a Just war according to the Catholic Church. The Catholic

Worker was against using Just War Theory in accordance to modern wars because

they thought a modern war could never be just.

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Annotated Bibliography

Primary Sources

The Catholic Worker. Micro-Film. State Historical Society of WisconsinThe Catholic Worker was the newspaper of the Catholic Worker Movement; it

focused on such topics as workers rights, strikes, and pacifism. The newspaper helped me understand why and how they formed a non-violent position in accordance to the Spanish Civil War.

Day, Dorothy. The Duty of Delight: The Diaries of Dorothy Day. Editor Robert Ellsberg. Milwaukee: Marquette University Press, 2008.

The Duty of Delight was a collection of Dorothy Day’s diaries. It helped me to know that she brought the idea of conscription being bad to the U.S. Congress.

Secondary Sources

Aleman, Richard "About the Distributist Review." The Distributist Review. http://distributistreview.com/about/.

About the Distributist Review talks about what Distributism is. It helped me understand what being a Distributist means.

Chatfield, Charles. "The Catholic Worker in the United States Peace Tradition." In American Catholic Pacifism: The Influence of Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker Movement, edited by Anne Klejment and Nancy L. Roberts, 1-12.

"The Catholic Worker in the United States Peace Tradition” talks about how the Catholic Worker Movement was one of the first Catholic American pacifist organizations and how that inspired other Catholics to become pacifist. I used it to show how The Catholic Worker’s pacifism was based on The Sermon on the Mount.

D'Olley, James, ed. "Spanish Civil War." Encyclopædia Britannica. Last modified July 20, 1998. Accessed September 2, 2016. https://www.britannica.com/event/Spanish-Civil-War.

This Encyclopædia Britannica article talks about the Spanish Civil. I used it for background information on how the Spanish Civil War started.

Dorbolo, Jon. "Just War Theory." Oregon State University. Last modified 2001. http://oregonstate.edu/instruct/phl201/modules/just_war_theory/criteria_intro.html.

Jon Dorbolo talks about Just War Theory, how it was created, and what the criteria are for a war to be just. I used it to learn how Just War Theory was created.

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Kjlegiment, Anne “The Spirituality of Dorothy Day’s Pacifism,” U.S. Catholic Historian, 27, no. 2, (Spring 2009), 3

The Spirituality of Dorothy Day’s pacifism is a biography of Dorothy Day and how she founded the Catholic Worker Movement. I used it to show how Dorothy Day became a radical.

Krupa, Stephen T., S.J. "American Myth and the Gospel: Manifest Destiny and Dorothy Day’s Nonviolence." In Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker Movement, edited by William J. Thorn, Phillip M. Runkel, and Susan Mountin, 184-96.

American Myth and the Gospel: Manifest Destiny and Dorothy Day’s Nonviolence" talks about how Manifest Destiny is a myth that Dorothy Day opposed. I used it to show that the Catholic Worker Movement was the first consistent American Catholic voice to promote pacifism.

LeBrun, John L. "The Way of Love: Pacifism and the Catholic Worker Movement, 1933-1939." In Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker Movement, edited by William J. Thorn, Phillip M. Runkel, and Susan Mountin, 445-56.

John L. Lebrun talks about the link of pacifism and the Catholic Worker Movement. I used it to show how the Catholic Worker Movement’s belief that Catholics should not fight in a war was based on the Councils of Perfection.

McNeal, Patricia. "Dorothy Day: Origins of Catholic Pacifism." Mid-America 74, no. 2 (April 1992): 149-69.

Patricia McNeal argues that Dorothy Day, through the Catholic Worker Movement, had the greatest impact on a shift among American Catholics to pacifism. I use it to show that the Catholic Worker Movement is responsible for the shift to pacifism among American Catholics.

Piehl, Mel. Breaking Bread: The Catholic Worker and the Origin of Catholic Radicalism in America.

Breaking Bread argued that the Catholic Worker Movement was one of the first Catholic American radical newspapers. I use it to show how before the Catholic Worker Movement, there were no organized American Catholic peace activity and give an example of how only four Catholics were conscientious objectors in World War I.

Valaik, David J. "American Catholic Dissenters and the Spanish Civil War." The Catholic Historical Review 53, no. 4 (January 1968): 540-41.

David J. Valaik talks about the Catholic organizations that were not for Franco. I used it to show that, even when The Catholic Worker lost subscriptions, it kept its neutral stand and I give an example of a magazine that changed its stance because of a loss in subscriptions, The Commonweal

Zehnder, Christopher et al. Light to Nations: The Making of the Modern World. Light to Nations talks about what caused the Spanish Civil War. I used it to show

how the Spanish Civil War was caused.

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Zwick, Mark, and Louise Zwick. The Catholic Worker Movement: Intellectual and Spiritual Origins.

The Catholic Worker Movement: Intellectual and Spiritual Origins gives a biography of the Catholic Worker Movement. I used it to show how Dorothy Day was against war because she believed Christians wanted to join the army because of patriotism, not their faith.

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