When he flew out of san francisco for asia on october 15, 1968, he left with the expectation of religious discovery, as if his monastic life at the. Thomas merton books list of books by author thomas merton. Ive already posted on thomas merton and buddhism, focusing on his artwork. The works are listed under each category by date of publication. Merton was also a proponent of thomas merton was one of the most influential catholic authors of the 20th century. Many new age mystics seem to approach buddhism as some sort of unitary philosophy, free of the rough edges and exclusion of other faiths.
Discount prices on books by thomas merton, including titles like the climate of monastic prayer. About merton a final selection is from books about merton. Thomas merton was not perfect, and he might not have been a saint. Born in france to an international family, merton moved to the u.
The journals of thomas merton 7 book series kindle edition. Thomas merton and dialogue with buddhism i have been asked, first, to sit in meditation with a buddhist group in san francisco at the end of this month and,then, give them a talk on thomas merton. He died young in thailand while attending a world conference of monastic leaders in 1968. This page is part of the thomas merton center at bellarmine university.
The second volume of thomas mertons gusty, passionate journals thomas moore chronicles mertons advancements to priesthood and emergence as a bestselling author with the surprise success of his autobiography, the seven storey mountain. Barron offers a tribute to him on the 100th anniversary of mertons birth. Journal entry dated september, 1968 so wrote thomas merton just a few months before his death by. Thomas merton ocso january 31, 1915 december 10, 1968 was an american trappist monk, writer, theologian, mystic, poet, social activist, and scholar of comparative religion. Traces the history of the cistercian order from its founding in 1098, through the reforms of the seventeenth century, its spread to the americas and asia, and its responses to the stresses of the outside world. Mystics and zen masters by merton, thomas and a great selection of related books. New seeds of contemplation, new directions publishing. Do not look for rest in any pleasure, because you were not created for pleasure. Shorter perhaps for an introduction is monica furlongs newly reissued merton a biography spck or. It was probably in the middle of my college years at columbia.
Merton and sufism, merton and hesychasm, merton and judaism, merton and buddhism, merton and the tao, merton and indigenous wisdom is merton and hinduism. Merton, a longtime social justice advocate, first approached eastern theology as an admirer of gandhis beliefs on nonviolence. He was a student for years of judaism and nonchristian religions. Thomas merton and interfaith dialogue the woolf institute. See all books authored by thomas merton, including the seven storey mountain, and new seeds of contemplation, and more on. He is the author of more than 70 books, including such classics as new seeds of contemplation, the seven storey mountain, and zen and the. Buddhism almost seems like the safe religion not demanding a belief in any one god or divinity. Thomas merton s most popular book is the seven storey mountain. The way of chuang tzu, by thomas merton, is the product of five years of immersion, study, prayer, and reflection on the work of zhuangzi, one of the towering figures in chinese taoism daojia who lived sometime between the fourth and third century bc. In 1949, he was ordained to the priesthood and given the name father louis.
Thomas merton 19151968 was born in france and came to live in the united states at the age of 24. His books, which have sold by the millions, have been translated into many languages. Ive also posted twice on thomas merton and islam here and here. He wrote over sixty other books and hundreds of poems and articles on topics ranging from monastic spirituality to civil. But he was indeed a master of the spiritual life, and his life and work had a profound effect on me and an army of others around the world. They are meant to emphasize his gifts as a spiritual master, which in the. Thomas merton ebooks epub and pdf downloads ebookmall. When he was a student at columbia university, merton sought out a hindu monk named bramachari for counsel. Merton and sufism, merton and hesychasm, merton and judaism, merton and buddhism, merton and the tao, merton and indigenous. Thomas merton used by kind permission of the thomas merton center, bellarmine university, ky a journey is a bad death if you ingeniously grasp or remove all that you had before you started, so that in the end you do not change at all. A trappist monk of the abbey of gethsemani, kentucky, he was a poet, social activist, and student of comparative religion. Used books may not include companion materials, some shelf wear, may contain highlightingnotes, may not include cdrom or access codes.
Mertons biographer, george woodcock, once wrote that almost from the beginning of his monastic career, thomas merton tentatively began to discover the great asian religions of buddhism and taoism. Thomas merton was a writer and trappist monk at our lady of gethsemani abbey in kentucky. The definitive and authorized biography is that of michael mott, the seven mountains of thomas merton spck. Thomas merton has 318 books on goodreads with 5648 ratings. The paradox was there at the beginning of his journey, even before merton became a christian. Thomas merton and the synergy of christianity and buddhism. Thomas merton was a true ascetic and contemplative that constantly challenged his understanding of a spiritual life as his ego driven self kept getting in the way of finding the true self within. Bonnie bowman thurston is the author of philippians and philemon, preaching mark, and women in the new testament. His intermonastic exchanges, interreligious dialogue, and their legacy. His autobiography, the seven storey mountain, has sold over one million copies and has been translated into over fifteen languages. Thomas merton biography thomas merton childhood, life. January 31, 1915 december 10, 1968 was an american catholic writer, theologian and mystic. Park makes extensive use of the books and journals of merton, demonstrating both a familiarity and a critical knowledge of these works. The essential writings is an excellent overview of mertons writing.
Mcgrath art gallery, bellarmine university may 7th june 2nd, 20 open daily. Merton saw other religions and other denominations as travellers on the same road. In his prologue to the silent life, merton describes the book as a meditation on the monastic life by one who, without any merit of his own, is privileged to know that life from the inside. Several of the works listed here have been published posthumously. On may 26, 1949, he was ordained to the priesthood and given the name father louis. The wisdom of the desert was one of thomas mertons favorites among his own bookssurely because he had hoped to spend his last years as a hermit. Cunninghams work is a lovely and compelling piece of scholarship. David steindlrast wrote that thomas said that he wanted to become as good a buddhist as i can.
Merton was a great writer who has a total of 70 books to his credit. Welcome to the merton center digital collections page. Merton had graduated a few years before 1938, but as a parttime english instructor and halfserious graduate student he continued to hang out with other former and current editors of jester, the college humor magazine, in their office on the fourth floor of john jay hall. The monastery gethsemani did not appreciate that he wrote so much about nonchristian religions. Thomas merton 19151968, a trappist monk, was one of the most wellknown catholic writers of the 20th century. Paradox is at the heart of zen buddhism, which was part of what drew the christian monk thomas merton deep into the study of buddhism and other religions of asia. Thomas merton was a trappist monk and author who was best known for his autobiography, the seven storey mountain, which was published in 1948. His father, a new zealand painter, and mother, an american artist, moved the. Merton wrote more than 50 books in a period of 27 years, mostly on spirituality, social justice and a quiet pacifism, as well as. There is an international thomas merton society with national branches in 15 countries, a thomas merton studies center, a thomas merton foundation, and a merton institute for contemplative living. The prechristian merton had come across aldous huxleys book on mysticism, ends and means, which sowed an attraction for not only mysticism in general, but for apophatic mysticismmeaning a knowledge of god obtained by negationthat would enable him to later relate to buddhist teachings about the void and emptiness the thomas. Thriftbooks sells millions of used books at the lowest everyday prices.
The personal tones of the translations, the blend of reverence and humor so characteristic of him, show how deeply merton identified with the legendary authors of these sayings and parables, the fourthcentury christian fathers who sought solitude. The dalai lama is also sensitive about the views of other buddhists concerning tibetan buddhism, especially some theravada buddhists who accuse tibetan buddhism of corruption by nonbuddhist elements. Thomas merton wrote the silent life a decade after he retreated to the discipline of trappist monasticism. The book has great appeal to someone who has never read merton, or to someone quite familiar with his works. The thomas merton center is the official repository of mertons artistic estate, which includes over thirteen hundred photographs and nine hundred drawings in addition to his writing. Thomas merton s encounter with buddhism clearly describes each of the topics that are explored, providing a historical overview and a critical analysis, drawing from wellrecognized merton scholars. Thomas merton, signed abebooks shop for books, art. Thomas merton books list of books by thomas merton.
We personally assess every books quality and offer rare, outofprint treasures. This reader contains sizable portions of representative texts written over the course of mertons monastic career. And if you do not know the difference between pleasure and joy you have not yet begun to live. Books by thomas merton author of the seven storey mountain. And i believe that by openness to buddhism, to hinduism, and to these great asian traditions, we stand a wonderful chance of learning more about the potentiality of our own traditions, because they have gone, from the natural point of view, so much deeper into this than we have.
He received several awards recognizing his contribution to religious study and contemplation, including the pax medal in 1963, and remained a devoted spiritualist and a tireless advocate for social justice until his death in 1968. Merton is the author of over forty books of poetry, essays, and religious writing, including mystics. In the last decade of his life, while living as a hermitmonk in dialogue with the world, thomas merton created a body of visual art, drawing from the zen buddhist tradition. Thomas merton and dialogue with buddhism i have been asked, first, to sit in meditation with a buddhist group in san francisco at the end of this. The second of the posts on merton and islam drew on a lecture delivered last year at the university of calgary by the disciples of christ minister and exegete bonnie thurston. Thomas merton 19151968 is arguably the most influential american catholic author of the twentieth century. The center archives more than fifty thousand mertonrelated materials. The buddhist notion of suffering and of loss is not for everybody, however. Thomas merton is best known today for his spiritual writings on contemplation and his own personal spiritual journey that led him to study eastern religions, especially zen buddhism. Thomas merton and dialogue with buddhism america magazine. Thomas merton and the dalai lama thomas merton center. In the 1969 book recollections of thomas merton s last days in the west, benedictine monk br. Thomas merton books biography and list of works author. Below is a bibliography of published works written by thomas merton, the trappist monk of the abbey of our lady of gethsemani.
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