8th Day Center for Justice was a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

based in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. Named after the Christian concept of an eighth day, it was founded in 1974 by six congregations of religious men and women. The center was advocacy-centered (primarily around

Catholic social teaching Catholic social teaching, commonly abbreviated CST, is an area of Catholic doctrine concerning matters of human dignity and the common good in society. The ideas address oppression, the role of the state (polity), state, subsidiarity, social o ...

) and was associated with over 40 religious communities, allowing the congregations to pool their resources for the work. According to its mission statement, the center existed to promote "a world of right relationships in which all creation is seen as sacred and interconnected. In such a world all people are equal and free from oppression, have a right to a just distribution of resources, and to live in harmony with the cosmos." The center and its staff sponsored weekly silent peace vigils beginning after 2001's

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercia ...

. It also hosted a radio show called ''The 8th Day'' on

WLUW WLUW (88.7 FM) is a college radio station owned and operated by Loyola University Chicago, serving Chicago, Illinois and its northern suburbs. History WLUW was founded in the 1970s, although it originally was not associated with Loyola Un ...

, Chicago. 8th Day Center was also involved in issues of

homelessness Homelessness or houselessness – also known as a state of being unhoused or unsheltered – is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and adequate housing. People can be categorized as homeless if they are: * living on the streets, also kn ...

human trafficking Human trafficking is the trade of humans for the purpose of forced labour, sexual slavery, or commercial sexual exploitation for the trafficker or others. This may encompass providing a spouse in the context of forced marriage, or the extrac ...

nuclear disarmament Nuclear may refer to: Physics Relating to the Atomic nucleus, nucleus of the atom: *Nuclear engineering *Nuclear physics *Nuclear power *Nuclear reactor *Nuclear weapon *Nuclear medicine *Radiation therapy *Nuclear warfare Mathematics *Nuclear ...

labor rights Labor rights or workers' rights are both legal rights and human rights relating to labor relations between workers and employers. These rights are codified in national and international labor and employment law. In general, these rights influen ...

inclusive language Inclusive language avoids expressions that are considered to express or imply ideas that are sexist, racist, or otherwise biased, prejudiced, or insulting to any particular group of people and sometimes animals as well. Use of inclusive language ...

, and

LGBT rights Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality. Notably, , 33 ...

. 8th Day Center for Justice had a special consultative relationship with the Economic and Social Council of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

. In April 2010, the center was named a Human Rights Champion by the Chicago Religious Leadership Network on Latin America. 8th Day Center for Justice closed in 2017.

Member congregations

Sponsoring members of 8th Day Center for Justice included: *

Claretian , image = Herb CMF.jpg , image_size = 175px , caption = Coat of arms of the Claretians , abbreviation = CMF , nickname = Claretians , formation = , founders = Anto ...

Missionaries of the US Western Province *

Divine Word Missionaries The Society of the Divine Word ( la, Societas Verbi Divini), abbreviated SVD and popularly called the Verbites or the Divine Word Missionaries, and sometimes the Steyler Missionaries, is a Catholic Church, Catholic clerical religious congregation ...

of North America *

Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary The Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, known by its initials BVM, is a Roman Catholic religious institute founded in the United States by Mother Mary Frances Clarke. Its founders were Irish Catholics. The BVM currently works in t ...

Priests of the Sacred Heart The Congregation of the Priests of the Sacred Heart ( la, Congregatio Sacerdotum a Sacro Corde Iesu) abbreviated SCI, also called the Dehonians, is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of Pontifical Right for men in the Catholic Church f ...

Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods The Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods are an apostolic congregation of Catholic women founded by Saint Theodora Guerin (known colloquially as Saint Mother Theodore) at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Indiana, in 1840. Mother Theodo ...

* Sisters of St. Joseph of the Third Order of St. Francis *

Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration The Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration (FSPA) is a Roman Catholic religious congregation for women whose motherhouse, St. Rose of Viterbo Convent, is in La Crosse, Wisconsin, in the Diocese of La Crosse. The Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual ...

Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ The Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ (PHJC) is a female congregation of the Catholic Church. It originated in Dernbach (Westerwald), where the generalate is still located. Their organization for ''associates'' (like Fiat Spiritus) is also open to m ...

These members helped to staff the center. Longstanding staff included Sister Kathleen Desautels. In addition, 34 other congregations served as member friends or contributing members.

References

External links

{{authority control Catholic social teaching Civil rights organizations in the United States LGBT political advocacy groups in the United States Political advocacy groups in the United States Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods Organizations that combat human trafficking Catholic Church in the United States 1974 establishments in Illinois Organizations based in Chicago