Saint Anselm College Rural Immersion at Agape October 4th-6th

gedc1133-resizeFor the first time Agape welcomed students from St.  Anselm College, Brayton’s Alma Mater (Class of ’67). Brayton shared the narrative of Joe McDonald, Philosophy Chair at St. Anselm from the 60’s to the 80’s, who was a former Catholic Worker (dating back to the 1930’s).  He invited Dorothy Day to St. Anselm College in the 60’s.  Dorothy’s reception was anything but enthusiastic.  The Manchester Union blazed headlines: “Communist comes to St Anselm College.” Brayton introduced the Catholic Worker, non-violent lineage.  Students assisted on this rural immersion in closing up the Agape garden, harvesting Brussels sprouts and tons of kale, kale, kale, and splitting and haling wood in preparation for the coming winter (if we have one). Here are some words from one of the student leaders: I believe Agape offers something that has become so rare in our world today. It offers peace. The community exudes acceptance and love. My grandmother always used the word “Selah,” which, in the Psalms, is a brief period of rest after the song is over in order for the listeners or readers to take in what they have just heard. Similarly, I believe this weekend trip to Agape served as a time for all of us to find our own Selah: to turn off phones, forget about school and focus on the here and now. We lived off of the land. We picked our dinner. This whole weekend pushed us enough out of our comfort zone to realize how wonderful life is outside of our preconceived ideas of what our “circle” or zone should be. gedc1166-resize gedc1137-resize -Hannah Miles