Catholic Artist, Brother Mickey McGrath, OSFS, Presents the “Many Faces of Hospitality”

On April 9, 2025, Immaculate Conception Seminary School of Theology featured renowned Catholic artist, Brother Mickey McGrath, OSFS, as part of its Many Faces of Hospitality series. In the Chapel of Christ the Good Shepherd, Brother Mickey delivered a lively presentation using artwork, storytelling and humor as he considered the lives of many Catholic figures, particularly Servant of God, Dorothy Day. The series, a key initiative of the Seminary’s Preaching as Hospitality program, is directed by Father Dominic Ciriaco.

A former associate professor of studio art and art history at De Sales University, Brother Mickey has been a full-time artist since 1994 and has authored numerous books while leading retreats and giving presentations, often using visio divina, helping his listeners to pray using artwork. For Brother Mickey, the canvas is his pulpit.

Most of Brother Mickey’s works consist of his own unique calligraphic writing style to display quotes, with splashes of bright colors and plant life to make the letters and background pop. His more advanced pieces feature portraits of religious figures alongside their quotes, and his works on Dorothy Day are no exception. His depictions of Day in her later years show her in positions of service and showcase her welcoming nature: Day volunteering at a public kitchen, a portrait of her with the dove of the Holy Spirit on her shoulder and many illustrations of her famous quotes.

Dorothy Day was an American journalist, social activist and Catholic convert who cofounded the Catholic Worker Movement of the 1930s and established “houses of hospitality,” centers for those struggling in poverty. One of Brother Mickey’s paintings showed Day holding a basket of items with words from the Magnificat beside her: “My soul proclaims the greatness of God, and God has filled the hungry with good things.” Brother Mickey explained that Day took these words and actively lived them. Her rationale was not just to simply hand out bowls of soup to the needy but also to always listen to people’s stories.

These aspects of Day’s caring and faithful personality are areas that Brother Mickey has experienced in his daily life. In his home of Camden, New Jersey, Brother Mickey spent time with a homeless man who was also an artist. After seeing the man’s sketches and drawings, Brother Mickey gifted him new art supplies which were later unfortunately stolen. The reality of that man’s situation is what draws Brother Mickey to see Day’s perspectives of welcoming the needy and inviting the stranger. “That’s where I encounter God,” he said. “It’s easier to see God there now, in those folks, in the brokenhearted.”

Brother Mickey highlighted other key saints and religious figures of hospitality, including St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, St. Francis de Sales, St. Mary Magdalene, St. Catherine of Siena and Sister Thea Bowman. He depicted Mother Seton in front of the Mercy Sisters Academy in Philadelphia with a caption reading “Instruct the Ignorant” and emphasized her offering education for women. His illustrations of St. Francis de Sales’ quotes highlight the message of being present in the moment and taking the time to pray and find God in all things: “Ordinary things all around you can induce worthy musing and devout yearning.”

St. Mary Magdalene was the first person to preach the good news of Jesus’ Resurrection, and a painting exists of her standing between two trees sharing this news; Brother Mickey made his own copy of this painting by sketching his first-person view in between two trees in a Philadelphia park, showing people enjoying the beautiful day. St. Catherine of Siena, whom Dorothy Day looked up to, used the Italian phrase pazzo d’amore, or “crazy love,” to teach that we should all be crazy in love with God, because He is crazy in love with us.

Sister Thea Bowman was an African American Franciscan Catholic who fought against the Jim Crow South. “I can preach in the streets, in the neighborhood, in the home, in the family,” she said. “And preaching done in the home brings life and meaning to the word preached in the pulpit.” One of her last speeches was at the 1989 United States Conference of Catholic Bishops — held here at Seton Hall University in the Athletic Center.

The evening concluded with a reception where attendees interacted with Brother Mickey and others, discussing the themes of the presentation and conversing with McGrath. “I would have loved to hear Brother Mickey speak longer,” said one participant.

Categories: Faith and Service