ABSTRACT AD MAJORDEM DEI GLORIAM: Fr. Daniel Berrigan, Michael Novak & Catholic Identity in Crisis in Mid-Twentieth Century America Prisca Y. Bird, M.A. Mentor: Barry G. Hankins, Ph.D. The 1960s were a time of great change in terms of Catholic identity and its relationship to American culture and politics. The Second Vatican Ecumenical Council (1962-1965) deeply unsettled the American Catholic Church as its liturgical reforms posed a serious challenge to Catholicism’s status as a distinctive religious community in the United States. Two figures that embodied the struggle of American Catholics to connect their faith to politics in this period were Father Daniel Berrigan, S.J., and Michael Novak. This thesis explores the roots of the ideological break between these two Catholic intellectuals and what it says about the nature of the decline of the American Catholic left in mid-twentieth century. It contends that the decline was a direct byproduct of anxieties related to the loss of tradition in the wake of Vatican II and the failure of the Catholic New Left to gauge the needs of working class Americans. "Ad Majordem Dei Gloriam": Fr. Daniel Berrigan, Michael Novak and Catholic Identity in Crisis in Mid-Twentieth Century America by Prisca Y. Bird, B.A. A Thesis Approved by the Department of History Barry G. Hankins, Ph.D., Chairperson Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Baylor University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts Approved by the Thesis Committee Barry G. Hankins, Ph.D., Chairperson James M. SoRelle, Ph.D. William L. Pitts, Ph.D. Accepted by the Graduate School August 2018 J. Larry Lyon, Ph.D., Dean Page bearing signatures is kept on file in the Graduate School. Copyright © 2018 by Prisca Y. Bird All rights reserved TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................................. v DEDICATION .................................................................................................................. vii CHAPTER ONE Introduction ........................................................................................... 1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 1 The Bona Fides of Daniel Berrigan and Michael Novak ................................................. 4 Historiography ............................................................................................................... 16 Methodology .................................................................................................................. 20 Thesis Structure ............................................................................................................. 23 CHAPTER TWO The Open Church: Novak, Berrigan and Vatican II ........................... 26 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 26 Vatican II and the Complication of American Catholic Identity ................................... 27 Disciples of Change: Vatican II's Impact on Berrigan and Novak ................................ 31 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 35 CHAPTER THREE Crisis of Conscience: Novak, Berrigan, and the Vietnam War ...... 37 American Catholics and the Moral Crisis of the Vietnam War ..................................... 38 The War Made Real: Novak and Berrigan in Vietnam.................................................. 41 A Tale of Two Radicals ................................................................................................. 48 Fiery Words to Real Flames: Berrigan and the Catonsville Draft Board Office Raid .. 55 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 60 CHAPTER FOUR Making Sense of Catonsville’s Embers: Berrigan and Catholic Identity in Flux in the Late 1960s ........................................................................ 61 Catholic Responses to Berrigan and Catonsville 1968-1974 ......................................... 63 Berrigan's Self-Perception ............................................................................................. 75 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 85 CHAPTER FIVE Rise of the Unmeltable Ethnics: Novak on White Ethnic Identity ..... 86 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 86 Novak on the Fires of Catonsville ................................................................................. 87 Novak on Berrigan's Embrace of the Ideology of the New Left ................................... 93 Berrigan as an Example of the Loss of Ethnic Identity in the New Left ....................... 96 Novak and the Rise of the Unmeltable Ethnics ............................................................. 99 Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 106 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................... 108 BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................................................................................... 114 iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I am grateful to the History Department of Baylor University for providing me with the opportunity to study American religious history under the tutelage of so many distinguished scholars. It was a great joy and honor to be able to work with Dr. Philip Jenkins, Dr. Andrea Turpin, Dr. Thomas Kidd, Dr. George Gawrych, Dr. David Bebbington, and Dr. Beth Allison Barr. You all had a profound impact on my life. Much appreciation also goes to Rene Coker-Prikyl for her many kindnesses and organizational prowess. I am much obliged to Dr. William Pitts and Dr. James SoRelle for serving on my thesis committee and engaging so thoughtfully with my argument. Finally, this thesis would not have been possible without the supervision of Dr. Barry Hankins. He was unfailingly gracious when personal trials stalled my progress in the program. He pushed me to keep researching and writing when my confidence was lacking. My work benefitted immensely from his keen editorial eye. I would also like to recognize my talented colleagues in the History Department. This phenomenal community of scholars saw me through some very difficult times. Thank you for being my surrogate family and for never ceasing to support me. I learned the joys of collaborative learning from all of you. It was a great honor to be the ‘token Canadian’ in your ranks these past few years. To my extended network of friends and family in both Texas and Canada, I offer my heartfelt thanks for your love. I would not have been able to pursue graduate studies without your support. I am deeply grateful to Melina Rookes, Gemma Lee, Jennifer and v Chris Allan, Jessica and Chris Ross, Victoria and Sam Burton, Catherine and Brendan Jones-Payne, Paige and Paul Gutacker, Priscilla and Peter Layman, and Rebacca and Leeron Chan for all of the words of encouragement and prayers that were freely offered during the writing process. Your faith in my ability to earn this degree never wavered. Cheers to Sarah Wardlaw for showing me that a person is more than their academic standing and that it is possible to finish well. I am especially indebted to my parents, Anna and Allen Bird. Your willingness to foster my intellectual curiosity from an early age made all the difference. Thank you for teaching me to love critical thinking. Thank you for praying so steadfastly for me and for never giving up. Last, but certainly not least, I wish to honor my husband. There is no greater act of love than willingly exchanging the comforts of Canada for the scorching heat of central Texas so that your wife can pursue graduate studies. Thank you Colin for believing in me. vi DEDICATION To Allen and Anna Bird and Colin Beynon vii CHAPTER ONE Introduction Far from being removed from American politics in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Catholics found their identity very much enmeshed in it. Contentions regarding religious exemptions in public schools, such as the 1859 Eliot School Rebellion, and objections to the public funding of religious education, such as the “Blaine Amendments” of the nineteenth century, saw parochial schools come under fire, and Catholics were forced to defend their religious identity in an academic and political system that was often hostile to them. When not beset by outside forces, American Catholics occasionally found themselves divided over their proper relationship with the state. The Americanist controversy pitted Catholics seeking a more assimilationist or nationalist faith that embraced American notions of individualism and liberty against Ultramontanists who looked to the Vatican for guidance in all ecclesiastical and political matters. In the early- and mid-twentieth century, figures like Alfred E. Smith (the first major-party Catholic nominee for President), popular radio host Father Charles Coughlin, and Senator Joseph McCarthy significantly increased the political profile of American Catholics and helped the laity see civic involvement as being central to the working out of faith and Catholic identity. The