George Barry Ford (October 28, 1885 – August 1, 1978) was an American Roman Catholic priest, advocate of civil rights, and the chaplain who, along with Fr. Moore, led

Thomas Merton Thomas Merton (January 31, 1915 – December 10, 1968) was an American Trappist monk, writer, theologian, mystic, poet, social activist and scholar of comparative religion. On May 26, 1949, he was ordained to the Catholic priesthood and giv ...

to the Roman Catholic Church. He was twice silenced by

Cardinal Francis Spellman Francis Joseph Spellman (May 4, 1889 – December 2, 1967) was an American bishop and cardinal of the Catholic Church. From 1939 until his death in 1967, he served as the sixth Archbishop of New York; he had previously served as an auxiliary ...

, and was a close friend of

Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt () (October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the first lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945, during her husband President Franklin D. Roosevelt's four ...

and

Carlton J. H. Hayes Carlton Joseph Huntley Hayes (May 16, 1882 – September 2, 1964) was an American historian, educator, diplomat, devout Catholic and academic. A student of European history, he was a leading and pioneering specialist on the study of nationalism. ...

. Dr. Henry P. Van Dusen, then president of Union Theological Seminary next to Corpus Christi, described Father Ford as "the best known and best loved man in the

Morningside Heights Morningside Heights is a neighborhood on the West Side of Upper Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Morningside Drive to the east, 125th Street to the north, 110th Street to the south, and Riverside Drive to the west. Morningside ...

community". Ford worked to establish the research institute and think tank

Freedom House Freedom House is a non-profit, majority U.S. government funded organization in Washington, D.C., that conducts research and advocacy on democracy, political freedom, and human rights. Freedom House was founded in October 1941, and Wendell Wil ...

along with Eleanor Roosevelt,

Wendell Willkie Wendell Lewis Willkie (born Lewis Wendell Willkie; February 18, 1892 – October 8, 1944) was an American lawyer, corporate executive and the 1940 Republican nominee for President. Willkie appealed to many convention delegates as the Republican ...

, Mayor

Fiorello La Guardia Fiorello Henry LaGuardia (; born Fiorello Enrico LaGuardia, ; December 11, 1882September 20, 1947) was an American attorney and politician who represented New York in the House of Representatives and served as the 99th Mayor of New York City fro ...

Elizabeth Cutter Morrow Elizabeth (Betty) Reeve Cutter Morrow (May 29, 1873 – January 24, 1955) was an American poet, champion of women's education, and influence on Mexican culture. She wrote several children's books and collections of poetry. She and her husband, amb ...

Dorothy Thompson Dorothy Celene Thompson (July 9, 1893 – January 30, 1961) was an American journalist and radio broadcaster. She was the first American journalist to be expelled from Nazi Germany in 1934 and was one of the few women news commentators on radio ...

Herbert Agar Herbert Sebastian Agar (29 September 1897 – 24 November 1980) was an American journalist and historian, and an editor of the ''Louisville Courier-Journal''. Early life Herbert Sebastian Agar was born September 29, 1897 in New Rochelle, New York ...

Herbert Bayard Swope Herbert Bayard Swope Sr. (; January 5, 1882 – June 20, 1958) was an American editor, journalist and intimate of the Algonquin Round Table. Swope spent most of his career at the ''New York World.'' He was the first and three-time recipient of t ...

Ralph Bunche Ralph Johnson Bunche (; August 7, 1904 – December 9, 1971) was an American political scientist, diplomat, and leading actor in the mid-20th-century decolonization process and US civil rights movement, who received the 1950 Nobel Peace Prize f ...

Roscoe Drummond Roscoe Drummond (1902–1983) was a 20th-century American political journalist, editor, and syndicated Washington columnist, known for his long association with ''The Christian Science Monitor'' and 50-year syndicated column "State of the Nation ...

, and

Rex Stout Rex Todhunter Stout (; December 1, 1886 – October 27, 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and ...

. He also helped establish the Church Peace Union that today is the

Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs The Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs is a New York City-based 501(c)3 public charity serving international affairs professionals, teachers and students, and the attentive public. Founded in 1914, and originally named ''Church ...

(New York Times obituary). Ford was a disciple of educational reformer

John Dewey John Dewey (; October 20, 1859 – June 1, 1952) was an American philosopher, psychologist, and educational reformer whose ideas have been influential in education and social reform. He was one of the most prominent American scholars in the f ...

, who was a professor at Columbia's Teacher's College, and he eventually received the John Dewey Award. In 1938, Thomas Merton sought Ford out at Corpus Christi Church to seek instruction in the Catholic faith. That same year, when Servant of God

Catherine Doherty Ekaterina Fyodorovna Kolyschkine de Hueck Doherty (August 15, 1896 – December 14, 1985) was a Russian-Canadian Catholic baroness, social worker, racial justice activist, and founder of Friendship House and Madonna House Apostolate. A pione ...

, Baroness de Hueck, arrived in New York, he gave her free rent in Harlem, which was a key to her success in establishing

Friendship House Friendship House was a missionary movement founded in the early 1930s by Catholic social justice activist Catherine de Hueck Doherty, one of the leading proponents of interracial justice in the period prior to the mid-20th-century civil rights mo ...

that became a key center of the future

Madonna House Apostolate The Madonna House Apostolate is a Roman Catholic Church, Catholic Christians, Christian community of Laity, lay men, women, and priests dedicated to loving and serving Jesus, Jesus Christ in all aspects of everyday life. It was founded in 1947 by C ...

. He also contributed frequently to her support. In 1954 he received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters (L.H.D.) degree from Columbia University. He also received honorary degrees from

Manhattan College Manhattan College is a private, Catholic, liberal arts university in the Bronx, New York City. Originally established in 1853 by the Brothers of the Christian Schools (De La Salle Christian Brothers) as an academy for day students, it was la ...

and Seton Hall College. In 1966 he served on the historic Ad hoc Commission on Rights of Soviet Jews. It was chaired by

Bayard Rustin Bayard Rustin (; March 17, 1912 – August 24, 1987) was an African American leader in social movements for civil rights, socialism, nonviolence, and gay rights. Rustin worked with A. Philip Randolph on the March on Washington Movement, in 19 ...

, and established by the Conference on the Status of Soviet Jews, offering a public tribunal on Jewish life in the Soviet Union. Fr. Ford is thanked in the liner notes to

George Carlin George Denis Patrick Carlin (May 12, 1937 – June 22, 2008) was an American comedian, actor, author, and social critic. Regarded as one of the most important and influential stand-up comedians of all time, he was dubbed "the dean of countercul ...

's 1972 album

Class Clown ''Class Clown'' is the fourth album released by American comedian George Carlin. It was recorded on May 27, 1972 at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in Santa Monica, California, and released in September. Background At the time Carlin was rel ...

, for although Carlin rejected the Catholic faith, he remembered Ford with cultural appreciation, and credited him for teaching him how to ask questions and think.Sullivan, James. ''Seven Dirty Words: The Life and Crimes of George Carlin.'' Da Capo, 2011, p. 18. Ford was an early champion of the Catholic

Ordination of Women The ordination of women to ministerial or priestly office is an increasingly common practice among some contemporary major religious groups. It remains a controversial issue in certain Christian traditions and most denominations in which "ordina ...

Awards

* Congregation B'nai Jeshurun (1948) * John Dewey Award of the New York Teachers Guild (1959) * William J. Schieffelin Award of the Citizens Union of New York (1963) * International Student Council (1964) * National Conference of Christians and Jews, Brotherhood Award (1965)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ford, George Barry 1885 births 1978 deaths 20th-century Roman Catholics Activists from New York (state) American Christian socialists American anti-war activists 20th-century American memoirists American anti-poverty advocates Catholic socialists Catholics from New York (state) Christian radicals Converts to Roman Catholicism from Anglicanism Nonviolence advocates Morningside Heights, Manhattan Upper West Side People of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York Roman Catholic activists

Awards

Further reading

References