“Francis always sided with the poor and the marginalized. He left the protection of the city to live among the outcasts. In a world where money and consumerism were taking hold, he took a stand
cxtvxÅt~xÜ Sister Dorothy Pagosa
“... and on the 8th day God invites us to be co-creators in building a more just and harmonious world.” These are the words that introduce the 8th Day Center for Peace and Justice in Chicago, Illinois, the place where Sister Dorothy Pagosa lives out the Franciscan ideal of peacemaking. It’s not easy being a persistent voice for those who have no voice, to be a non-violent person in the midst of anger and greed, and to reconcile relationships in the human community and establish right relationships with the gifts of the earth. Sister Dorothy has been doing this all her life. She was happy as an accountant in North Olmsted, Ohio, but life took an unexpected turn to the Sisters of St. Joseph,TOSF. In her second year of novitiate, Sr. Dorothy spent three months with Sister Sandy LoPorto at the 8th Day Center for Peace and Justice in Chicago, Illinois. That was a defining moment. After two years of parish pastoral work in a parish in Ohio, Sr. Dorothy began full-time work at the 8th Day Center. “This is exactly where I see the ideals of Francis and Clare being lived,” says Sr. Dorothy. “Francis always sided with the poor and the marginalized. He left the protection of the city to live among the outcasts. In a world where money and consumerism were taking hold, he took a stand for Gospel living. This flowed from his conviction that there is a connectedness, a oneness with all of creation. His Canticle of
for Gospel living.”