This Land is Home to Me – the Appalachian Pastoral Back Story

May 18 @ 12:00 am - 1:00 pm

Join in Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of
This Land is Home to Me
May 18 in the Church after the 10:30 Mass

Prior to Vatican II many viewed the Catholic church as a “fortress church” trying to shield “the faithful” from the threats of the modern world. Then Pope John XXIII “threw open the windows,” and his successor, Paul VI, despite some pushback, stayed the course.

On the last day of the fourth session of Vatican II, the bishops approved Gaudium et Spes, (Joy and Hope), the fourth and final [Pastoral] Constitution on the Church in the Modern World. Its main significance lies in its call for the church to engage with contemporary issues, including social justice, poverty, technology, and ecumenism, while reaffirming the church’s focus on the dignity of the human person. Its opening words reoriented the church from inward to outward facing: “The joys and hopes, the griefs and anxieties of the men (sic) of this age, especially those who are poor or in any way afflicted, these too are the joys and hopes, the griefs and anxieties of the followers of Christ.”

But how to make these promises concrete? Members of the Glenmary Fathers, a missionary order active in many of the rural areas of Appalachia, and some of the women religious who, in response to Vatican II, had been “missioned” by their orders to live among and serve the poor in these areas took these words to heart. They initiated a process that today we call synodality – listening to the “joys, hopes, griefs and anxieties of the poor.” They involved bishops in hearings, took one on one testimonies, noted the sufferings and injustices of the people around them. Then they took the next steps. They asked the “why” questions. They sought to identify the causes of the suffering, the social injustices that kept people down.

This was a new way of being church. Popes for over 100 years had been writing social encyclicals but never before had the poor spoken on their own behalf. Now the question – how to convey what had been heard in the voice of the poor?

This pastoral letter was as bold as Vatican II. Not only did it give the poor voice – it also gave the bishops of Appalachia voice. Come learn more!

Our presenter, Joe Holland, received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in the field of Ethics & Society, which explored praxis-oriented interdisciplinary dialogue among Theology, Philosophy, and Social Science. Joe is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy & Religion and Adjunct Professor in the College of Law at Saint Thomas University in Miami Gardens, Florida, where he taught for over 25 years. In addition, he is an Honorary Visiting Professor at the Universidad Nacional del Altiplano in Puno, Peru, and he has served as Adjunct Professor at various theological schools.

After studies at the University of Chicago, Joe served for 13 years as a Research Associate at the Center of Concern in Washington DC. The International Jesuit Order and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops jointly created the Center to work with the United Nations on major global issues. While there, he ghost-wrote two influential US Catholic documents: This Land Is Home to Me: A Pastoral Letter on Powerlessness in Appalachia (1975), issued by the 25 Catholic bishops of the Appalachian Region; and At Home in the Web of Life: A Pastoral Message on Sustainable Communities (1995), a 20th-anniversary sequel again from the Catholic bishops of the Appalachian Region.

Read the full bio of Joe Holland

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