Catherine Morris, Public Servant

Yesterday's Los Angeles Catholic Worker Seder at the Dolores Mission in East L.A. was attended by over 100 people. Catherine Morris, for nearly 40 years an anchor in the turbulent seas of the LACW, reminded us of something Mother Teresa said: "We are not called to be successful, we are called to be faithful." Nevertheless, it was by all accounts a "successful" Seder. Great music, delicious tamales, elegant dancing, and a politically-oriented Haggadah that draws potent analogies between slavery in ancient Egypt and in the United States today, challenging all those who look to Pharaoh for salvation.

Organizing a feast like this is no small task. Organizing a feast for 600 people at a Skid Row soup kitchen is no small task, and to do it several times a week for nearly 40 years requires dedication to the ideal of service of others.

Politicians call themselves "public servants." How does a politician "serve" the public? Chiefly by forcibly or fraudulently redistributing wealth. The federal budget is nearly $3 trillion. During the first decade of the 21st century, about half a trillion dollars will be spent on the war in Iraq. Hundreds of billions of dollars will flow into the coffers of corporations large and small: "their risks are subsidized, their losses are socialized, and their profits are privatized," as Will Grigg puts it. How does this "serve the public?" Doesn't the true servant of the public call attention to the dangers of government-subsidized mass destruction? Doesn't the true servant of the public stand up and cry out that the emperor has no clothes?

Politicians will point out the many projects funded by their budgets, and certainly there are genuinely needy people who are helped by some of these projects. But a true leader does not use the coercive power of the government to extort money from the unwilling "rich" to give to the undeserving "poor." A true leader motivates, persuades, enlightens, encourages, and empowers those who can to help those who can't. Giving then comes from the heart, with no threats of violence against the unpersuaded.

"But if we don't pass a law, the poor will not be helped, because people are greedy and self-centered." Then how will "we" pass a law? How can we persuade greedy people to vote for "politicians who care" if voters are greedy and self-centered? Democracy is subtly replaced by oligarchy: government by elites. But even if we could, why should we attempt to persuade people to vote for politicians who will take money from the unwilling under threats of violence, keep a cut for themselves, then return the remaining money back to their districts with strings attached ("Do not preach sermons using this money") rather than persuade people to act directly and personally to solve social problems? We must persuade and empower all Americans to become servants of the public rather than merely vote for "public servants."

Many people resist becoming servants of the public. "I don't have time to volunteer, because I have to work overtime to pay my taxes which are supposed to solve the problem you want me to help solve voluntarily." It's a vicious circle. In the years I worked at Isaiah House we did not accept any money confiscated by the government. I'm not sure I can condemn social service agencies who accept money seized by the government. I only hope they are dedicated to faithfulness rather than "success."

What are the costs endured by a true public servant for calling attention to the harm done by those who call themselves "public servants?" Often it is jail. "Everyone knows" that if you criticize the government too much, you will be subjected to an IRS audit or some retaliation, if not by the government directly, then by someone -- an employer, a neighbor -- who acts out of misguided
loyalty to the State. The lawsuit replaces Jesus' command to "go to your brother" personally. This is how things are done in Communist China and in the "former" Soviet Union, where the "snitch mentality" is inculcated. Increasingly, this is how things are done in the United States.

Catherine Morris has protested lavish expenditures on cathedrals, turned an industrial building into an oasis on Skid Row, given guidance to students from the USC School of Nursing, listened for hours to the stories of the poor, and conveyed these stories to comfortable suburbanites. Jack Abramoff has never offered Catherine Morris any money for her work. I guess that means she just isn't a "success."