Tag Archives: Thomas Merton
Returning to Enduring Wisdom
Tradition Returning to Enduring Wisdom Friday, January 20, 2017 Today in the United States we inaugurate a new president. While I pray President Trump leads with wisdom, compassion, and justice, we cannot simply sit back and watch whatever unfolds. We the people have a tremendous responsibility to work together, to speak truth to power, to Read More »
Trinity: Week 3 Summary
Trinity: Week 3 Summary: Sunday, September 25-Friday, September 30, 2016 If the Father does not dominate the Son, and the Son does not dominate the Holy Spirit, and the Spirit does not dominate the Father or the Son, then there’s no domination in God. All divine power is shared power. (Sunday) Trinitarian theology offers us perhaps Read More »
Join in the Dance
Trinity: Week 3 Join in the Dance Thursday, September 29, 2016 Once you learn to take your place inside the circle of praise and mutual deference, all meaningful distinctions between secular and sacred, natural and supernatural, fall away. In the Divine Economy, all is useable, even our mistakes and our sin. The cross shouted this Read More »
Creative Continuation
Trinity: Week 2 Creative Continuation Thursday, September 22, 2016 Daniel Walsh, who was Thomas Merton’s primary philosophy teacher, says he’s not sure if the human person can even legitimately be called a creation, because we are a continuance of, an emanation from, a “subsistent relation” with what we call Trinity. Wow! This is getting very Read More »
Seeing with God’s Eyes
Nondual Consciousness Seeing with God’s Eyes Wednesday, August 17, 2016 St. John of the Cross says in many ways throughout his writings that God refuses to be known in the way we know all other objects; God can only be known by loving God. I like to call this “center to center” or “subject to Read More »
A Point of Nothingness
True Self/False Self: Week 1 A Point of Nothingness Friday, August 5, 2016 Today we continue with Thomas Merton’s description of the True Self as written following his “conversion” at Fourth and Walnut. It is so inspired, I want to quote it at length: At the center of our being is a point of nothingness Read More »
In God’s Eyes
True Self/False Self: Week 1 In God’s Eyes Thursday, August 4, 2016 Yesterday, we looked at Thomas Merton’s explanation of the false self. What follows is part of his description of the True Self. Merton wrote this shortly after his transformative experience at the corner of Fourth and Walnut in Louisville (now Muhammad Ali Boulevard). Read More »
The Illusion of an Autonomous Self
True Self/False Self: Week 1 The Illusion of an Autonomous Self Wednesday, August 3, 2016 I am using the terms True Self and false self as they were used by Thomas Merton. In his classic New Seeds of Contemplation, Merton writes: Every one of us is shadowed by an illusory person: a false self. This Read More »
The Will of God
Two Halves of Life: Week 2 The Will of God Monday, June 20, 2016 In the first half of life we usually internalize the voices of parents and teachers that very understandably emphasize obedience to authority. Spiritual directors and confessors know that those internal voices are often mistaken for the voices of God for the Read More »
The Contemplative Mind Is a Mind Liberated from Itself
Action and Contemplation: Week 2 The Contemplative Mind Is a Mind Liberated from Itself Tuesday, May 17, 2016 Within twenty-four hours of Rowan Williams’ address to the Roman Synod of Bishops in 2012, I must have had ten emails from all over the world sending me the following quote and saying, “Richard, you’ve got to Read More »
