Cultivating “bread and roses” within our homes, cities, and whole Earth community.
Benincasa Community
About
Benincasa Community is a lay community named for Catherine (Benincasa) di Siena, the peacemaker, mystic, theologian, and reformer. Dedicated to the works of mercy and justice in an era thirsting for humanity's collective recognition of unity and interdependence within all of creation, members of Benincasa are grounded by faith, an emerging understanding of the new cosmology, the development of new economic models in our world, and the need for deepening relationships with the land and one another.
Bread and Roses
We share “bread” by working on the land, opening rooms for people in need of housing, welcoming visitors and organizers, offering retreat programs, and engaging in social justice efforts for collective liberation. We offer “roses” to lift spirits and elevate dignity by hosting regular liturgical events, highlighting the work of artist-activists, praying and singing together nightly, and deepening our contemplative practice by studying examples of radical resistance to racism, sexism, capitalism, and environmental degradation.
Roots
We are guided by four pillars: contemplation (prayer), learning (study), activism/service (works), and right relationship (community). We are inspired by and connected to the Dominican Sisters of the Northeast, the Catholic Worker Movement, and the Jesuit community of Dan Berrigan. We are monastic in that we offer a peaceful place of refuge for guests and visitors while maintaining a daily rhythm of meals and prayer. We are apostolic in that we offer aid and seek to be in solidarity with our neighbors and all of creation.
The Motherhouse
Together, we pray, study, live, and work for justice each day. Our commitments are to live simply and sustainably, be radically available to those in need, discern God’s call in our lives, and build beloved community. The Benincasa Motherhouse at Fisher’s Nook is a center for gathering and celebrating this community together.
Peter Maurin Garden
The Peter Maurin Garden at Fisher’s Nook aims to participate in the effort to build an “agronomic university” through restoration farming practices, sharing everything grown with local food pantries and soup kitchens, and providing opportunities for people to put their hands in the soil with purposeful, life-giving work on the land.
Dan Berrigan Center
The Daniel Berrigan Center offers limited accommodations and retreat/work space for individuals and groups such as, college students on alternative break trips and organizers planning campaigns in their communities. The barn at Fisher’s Nook has been converted to include a working kitchen, bathrooms, and lodging for 7-10 individuals.