An amazing priest

March 22, 2008 in Eastern Orthodox Christianity
Tags: African Orthodox, African-American Orthodox, African-Americans, Al Raboteau, Albert Raboteau, Catholic Worker, charities, civil rights movement, converts, David Kirk, Dorothy Day, Eastern Catholic Church, Eastern Catholicism, Eastern Christianity, Eastern Orthodoxy, Emmaus House, Emmaus Movement, Harlem, homeless, homelessness, Julia Raboteau, New York, obituaries, Orthodox Christianity, orthodoxy, poverty

I just came upon the NY Times obituary for Fr. David Kirk of Emmaus House/Harlem in New York City, who reposed last May 23, the week before Pentecost.  The obit is reproduced at Wikipedia. More details at The OCA.  This seems to be a website archive/homage of him.  There’s quite a bit about him through Google, including a National Public Radio report after his death.  Memories of him from Fr. John Garvey in the journal of the Orthodox Peace Fellowship, as well as from Albert and Julia Raboteau (see below).

Emmaus House/Harlem continues as a broad community of (formerly) homeless people and others with them – sounding very much like the Catholic Worker movement of Dorothy Day with which/whom Fr. David was also associated – including Albert Raboteau (sometimes officially referred to as Al Raboteau), an Orthodox professor of religion at Princeton University and African-American convert from Catholicism, and his wife Julia.

Emmaus House needs money and other material help, as well as prayers and solidarity.