Mustard Seed Catholic Worker

Mustard Seed Catholic Worker The Mustard Seed Catholic Worker is a house of hospitality inspired by the vision and witness of Peter Maurin and Dorothy Day.

Send mail to The Mustard Seed, PO Box 2592, Worcester MA 01613. The Mustard Seed Catholic Worker is a house of hospitality in the Catholic Worker movement, an apostolic movement begun in 1933 by Peter Maurin and Dorothy Day. The intent of the movement is to give flesh to the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth and Catholic social thought by doing the works of mercy and opposing the works of war. Our mi

ssion is to perform the corporal and spiritual works of mercy at a personal and social sacrifice, to nurture and promote a culture of concern and generosity so that human suffering is relieved and a better society not only envisioned but lived as a microcosm of what can be pursued more widely by allies and friends. The Mustard Seed (founded in 1972) is a community of faith, hope and love that has manifested as a living room, as a refuge for the hungry, lonely, and homeless and as an ideal (that in the ideal) is what a Christian community looks like or should look like in practice. Our community is committed to: prayer, personal and communal conversion of life, clarification of thought (lifelong learning), “the building of a society where it is easier for people to be good” and a work culture that sees labor as sacred and that upholds small-scale agriculture and artisanship as virtues and hopeful means for “building a new society in the shell of the old.”
The Mustard Seed has a major role in feeding the hungry. The house of hospitality at 93 Piedmont Street offers a free meal to Worcester’s hungry. The community has fed the hungry for over 40 years and has also worked on behalf of peace and environmental and social justice in many campaigns and initiatives over that time. The community remains committed to the Catholic Worker vision as espoused in its “Aims and Purposes” published each May in the Catholic Worker newspaper.

06/21/2026

Many thanks to John Dick who volunteered his time and materials to repair a damaged door. Very appreciative that he could respond to our need so quickly 🙏🏻

06/20/2026

The Center is Love

The kingdom of heaven
is like a mustard seed.
Although the smallest seed,
when it grows
it becomes the largest
of garden plants,
and becomes a tree,
so that birds come
and perch in its branches.
Its branches extend
over borders and walls,
its leaves offer
shelter and shade,
its roots secure
a firm foundation—
a home,
for each bird
from each species,
of all sizes and colors –
red and blue
and yellow and green
and violet and orange
and gray and brown
and black and white—
with blended mixtures
of all of these.
They build their nests,
they feed their young,
they flourish and grow.
This is what
the kingdom of heaven is like.

The kingdom of heaven is now,
if you choose to enter.

~ poem and block print by Kreg Yingst

06/19/2026

Many thanks to St Francis Episcopal for picking up three more of our open meal dates. Very thankful for all who join us in this ministry. Providing a daily meal for 120 is one of our largest potential expenses so we couldn’t do this without the many organizations committed to this. We still have the following dates available . July 1st, July 24th, Aug 7th, Aug 24th, Dec 4th and Dec 24th. If interested please contact Paula bushey at [email protected]. 🙏🏻

06/15/2026

In appreciation to my friend Joann Reidy for helping me stain the ramp at the seed yesterday. More to do but in the home stretch.

06/15/2026

Many thanks to Ned Lesure who volunteered his time to clean our ramp prior to the starting project. Very appreciative. Also , to Living Colors (Shrewsbury) who painted our pavilion and did a great job.

06/12/2026
06/11/2026

This is one of the most impactful speeches delivered by the Pope.

He just received a 7-minute standing ovation for affirming the dignity of human life, from the moment of conception to natural death, in front of the Spanish Parliament

"The defense of human life is neither a partisan issue nor a confessional interest: it is a goal of civilization."

"Can a community that casts into the shadows the unborn child, the elderly, the sick, those who suffer in silence, or those who depend entirely on the care of others be called fully just?"

06/11/2026

How hard and terrible a thing is the Christian religion, which teaches us that those who take the sword will die by the sword, that we must forgive our enemies, who are to be found in “our own household” Jesus Christ said. We call ourselves Christian, we citizens of the United States, the majority of us, but no one would ever know us as Christian! Reflect on the life of Jesus who came to call sinners, who was born in poverty, who lived as a worker for thirty years. He was an itinerant teacher, walking the roads of Palestine…

-Dorothy Day

06/10/2026

Address

93 Piedmont Street
Worcester, MA
01609

Opening Hours

Monday 5pm - 6:30pm
Tuesday 5pm - 6:30pm
Wednesday 5pm - 6:30pm
Thursday 5pm - 6:30pm
Friday 5pm - 6:30pm

Telephone

+15087547098

Website

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