Thomas Merton
A recapitulation of his earlier work Seeds of Contemplation, this collection of sixteen essays plumbs aspects of human spirituality. Merton addresses those in search of enduring values, fulfillment, and salvation in prose that is, as always, inspiring and compassionate....
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, a dominant figure in the history of the Catholic Church and the last of the Church Fathers, died in his monastery in Burgundy on August 20, 1153. In commemoration of the eighth centenary of his death, Pope Pius XII issued one of his most significant encyclical letters—Doctor Mellifluus—which...
10) The new man
Join Thomas Merton in this remarkable course on the Second Vatican Council. On October 11, 1962, the Second Vatican Council opened, and it had a tremendous influence on the Church. Fifty years later the decrees and documents of the council continue to be a lively subject of discussion. Now you can discover the council and its documents with beloved mystic and author Thomas Merton. In 1963 and 1965, Merton delivered erudite lectures on the impact
...What is the function of the contemplative in the modern world? This question lies at the root of Thomas Merton's extended contemplation of Franz Kafka's dystopian novel, The Castle. A hugely influential writer from the 20th century, Kafka (1883-1924) was a German-speaking Jew born in Prague. His fiction—especially his 1915 novella The Metamorphosis, in which the protagonist finds himself transformed into an insect—is so
...Explore the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas with Thomas Merton as your guide. While he was a student at Columbia University, Thomas Merton stumbled upon The Spirit of Medieval Philosophy by renowned neo-Thomistic philosopher Étienne Gilson. An essential work on St. Thomas and other Christian philosophers, it led him down a path of spiritual seeking that would culminate with his conversion to the Catholic Church and entrance into a Trappist
...Join Thomas Merton in exploring one of the most influential figures in the history of spirituality. Delivered in 1962 to the novices at Merton's monastery, these talks allow you to hear his voice and experience his powerful teaching.
Born in the fourth century, Saint John Cassian (A.D. 360 – 435) lived when tensions between the traditional and innovative peaked. A monk and theologian, Cassian made the Christian tradition relevant
...What can the first Christian monks teach you about holy living today? In a set of conferences he recorded in 1963, Thomas Merton turns a thoughtful eye to this question. Thomas Merton gave these conferences to the novice monks he taught. As you listen to Merton, you will join his students in the classroom. Although they led ascetic lives centuries ago, St. Benedict, the Desert Fathers and Mothers, and other early Christian saints have much to teach
...New York Times bestselling author and monk, Thomas Merton, exploring the literature and spirituality of 20th century's greatest novelist: James Joyce. Born in 1882 to a Catholic family in Dublin, James Joyce wrote some of the most acclaimed masterpieces of modern literature: Ulysses, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, Dubliners, and Finnegans Wake. Educated by Jesuits and deeply influenced by Thomas
...Travel into the desert with Thomas Merton as your guide. In the third century, men and women journeyed into the deserts of Syria and Egypt. Turning away from the world, they sought to find salvation in solitude. By doing so, they developed new forms of monasticism and spirituality. Now known as the Desert Fathers and Mothers, their wisdom remains as inspirational today as ever. In this set of lectures released to the public for the first time ever,
...