At Play in the Lions' Den: A Biography and Memoir of Daniel Berrigan by Jim Forest (review)

When Jesuit Father Daniel Berrigan died on April 30, 2016, an era ended in American Catholicism. As tributes poured out in the days and weeks following Berrigan's death, it became clear that the Catholicism he practiced was altogether unique and a product of his experiences in various "worlds": religious life, the Catholic Worker, and poetry, to name but a few. Also clear was the fact that Berrigan's is not the household name it once had been. Responding to both of these realities, Jim Forest has produced a biography of the late priest-poet that is invaluable for those who wish to learn about Berrigan for the first time, or to refresh their memories after years of having forgotten the name of the priest who once graced the cover of Time magazine.

Forest was a close friend of his subject and is a longtime warrior of the peace movement, having been the co-founder of the Catholic Peace Fellowship, a former editor of The Catholic Worker, and a colleague of Dorothy Day. Forest's own history in the movement is crucial to bear in mind when reading At Play in the Lions' Den, because the reader immediately becomes acutely aware of the author's relationship with Berrigan. Through reading this book, the reader gains a view of a tender, yet not uncomplicated, relationship. Just as is in any other friendship, the Berrigan-Forest relationship also had rough patches. Perhaps readers will find some of the richest material in this book is discovering how to move beyond misunderstandings and hurt feelings. Forest makes it clear that Berrigan could sometimes be very sensitive, yet this character trait was always outdone by his much greater capacity for forgiveness.

There are three concrete ways in which the "memoir" aspect of this text benefits the reader. First, the loving relationship between author and subject is manifested not only in Forest's knowledge of Berrigan's life story, but more so in the plethora of personal stories and remembrances Forest is able to recount about Berrigan's remarkable life. These are the types of stories that could have fallen flat when they are being told by a more neutral biographer, but which come alive through Forest's often firsthand re-telling. My favorite of these stories concerned a time from 1965 when Berrigan had been presiding at informal liturgies in his room with Forest and Tom Cornell. After having received the order to cease these liturgies, Forest recounts Berrigan disobeying the command and saying simply to his fellow communicants, "Let the Lord make of this what he will" (75).

The second thing about this book that stands out for its singular achievement are the various photographs of Berrigan at all stages of his life. Both personally donated by Forest and other friends, as well as found from the Berrigan archives at Cornell University and the masterful collections of legendary photographer Bob Fitch at Stanford University, these images are a real treasure. Third, Forest has pored over Berrigan's voluminous writings and found some gems of insight to excerpt in the margins of the book's pages. Not only do these quotations often add further depth to the material being covered in Forest's text, but they also provide the reader with leads for further reading and research.

I was also left wishing for more from this book at times. There was relatively little (only ten pages) on Berrigan's relationship with his New York Jesuit community of many decades. Likewise, the book could have been enhanced especially by a further exploration of Berrigan's relationship with three of his biological brothers who did not join him in his work for peace: Tom, Jr., Jim, and John. Finally, a few factual details should have been double-checked for accuracy. For example, Forest (who could not attend Berrigan's funeral) relies on an inaccurate account of...