Thomas Merton: Contemplation in Action

Hungryhearts article by Terrence A. Taylor

Thomas Merton (1915-1968) was a member of a Roman Catholic monastic community that embraced silence, yet he spoke volumes about the most important spiritual issues of our day. He was an enormously complex man who sought silence, solitude and contemplation while at the same time living an active life that led him to friendships with hundreds of people scattered throughout the world.  Although his movement and communication was quite restricted for the 27 years that he was a member of the Cistercian order, he played a key role in shaping historical events by speaking out on important moral issues of his day. His leadership established him as a model for how people of faith from all walks of life can immerse themselves in a spirituality that will naturally give rise to concerns for their fellow human beings and for all of God's creation.

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