Entering the Silence: Becoming a Monk and a Writer (Journals of Thomas Merton) [Paperback]

Thomas Merton (Author)

Book Description

Series: Journals of Thomas Merton | Publication Date: January 30, 1997

"Inexorably life moves on towards crisis and mystery. Everyone must struggle to adjust himself to this, to face the situation for 'now is the judgment of the world.' In a way, each one judges himself merely by what he does. Does, not says. Yet let us not completely dismiss words. They do have meaning. They are related to action. They spring from action and they prepare for it, they clarify it, they direct it." --" Thomas Merton ,"" August 16, 1961

The fourth volume of Thomas Merton's complete journals, one of his final literary legacies, springs from three hundred handwritten pages that capture - in candid, lively, deeply revealing passages - the growing unrest of the 1960s, which Merton witnessed within himself as plainly as in the changing culture around him.

In these decisive years, 1960-1963, Merton, now in his late forties and frequently working in a new hermitage at the Abbey of Gethsemani, finds himself struggling between his longing for a private, spiritual life and the irresistible pull of social concerns. Precisely when he longs for more solitude, and convinces himself he could not cut back on his writing, Merton begins asking complex questions about the contemporary culture ("the 'world' with its funny pants, of which I do not know the name, its sandals and sunglasses"), war, and the churches role in society.

Thus despite his resistance, he is drawn into the world where his celebrity and growing concerns for social issues fuel his writings on civil rights, nonviolence, and pacifism and lead him into conflict with those who urge him to leave the moral issues to bishops and theologians.

This pivotal volume in the Merton journals reveals a man at the height of abrilliant writing career, marking the fourteenth anniversary of his priesthood but yearning still for the key to true happiness and grace. Here, in his most private diaries, Merton is as intellectually curious, critical, and insightful as in his best-known public writings while he documents his movement from the cloister toward the world, from Novice Master to hermit, from ironic critic to joyous witness to the mystery of God's plan.

Thomas Merton (1915-1968) was a Trappist monk, writer and peace activist. His spiritual classics include "New Seeds of Contemplation, The Sign of Jonas, Mystics and Zen Masters" and "The Seven Story Mountain"

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

To love oneself perfectly, Merton writes in an entry near the end of this volume, is to disappear. For a writer, it is to disappear entirely into one's writing as God disappears entirely into the world--a disappearance that makes one fully, paradoxically, present. This is the record of a remarkable twentieth-century figure perfecting his love in the process, as the subtitle has it, of becoming a monk and writer. The book includes two fragments and a complete journal, only part of which was published during Merton's lifetime. The complete journal from December 1946 to July_ 1952, which describes the tension between writing and contemplation in which Merton lived at Gethsemani, is an exemplary piece of writing about writing, as well as an invitation to active contemplation. This is the second of seven volumes scheduled to appear over the next three years. It will enchant readers who are new to Merton as well as those who encountered him for the first time in the premonastic journals of volume one and those who have known him for a long time. It will leave new readers and old acquaintances anxious for the next encounter. Steve Schroeder --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Publisher

"Let me keep silence in this world, except in so far as God wills and in the way He wills it. Let me at least disappear into the writing I do. It should mean nothing special to me, nor harm my recollection. The work could be a prayer; its results should not concern me."-Thomas Merton, December 14, 1946

During his arduous days and nights in the silence of the monastery, the young Thomas Merton simultaneously advanced to priesthood and emerged as a surprising bestselling author when his spiritual autobiography, The Seven Story Mountain, was published in 1948. Spanning the journal entries in an eleven-year period from December 12, 1941 to July 5, 1952, Entering the Silence unfolds Merton's budding literary career and the development of his spiritual ideas in a uniquely personal literary style that would propel his writings into the mainstream. As the demands of his literary success rose, so did the tensions between remaining an observant monk and a talented, prolific writer. Faithful to both of these passions, Merton struggled with the requirements of daily monastic life while he continued to grace the world with his fresh observations and profound insights.

This second volume in the Merton journals includes passionate descriptions of monastic life -- silence, chanting, farm work, the community of monks -- and touchingly exhibits the young priest's dedication to writing. "At work -- writing -- I am doing a little better. I mean, I am less tied up in it, more peaceful and detached. Taking one thing at a time and going over it slowly and patiently and forgetting the other jobs that have to take their turn."

As Merton's talent as a writer blossomed, he eloquently reconciled his spiritual life with his writing life, drawing deep connection between the two. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 526 pages
• Publisher: HarperOne; 1 edition (January 30, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060654775
• ISBN-13: 978-0060654771
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.1 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #855,623 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Thomas Merton (1915-1968) is arguably the most influential American Catholic author of the twentieth century. His autobiography, The Seven Storey Mountain, has millions of copies and has been translated into over fifteen languages. He wrote over sixty other books and hundreds of poems and articles on topics ranging from monastic spirituality to civil rights, nonviolence, and the nuclear arms race.

After a rambunctious youth and adolescence, Merton converted to Roman Catholicism and entered the Abbey of Gethsemani, a community of monks belonging to the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (Trappists), the most ascetic Roman Catholic monastic order.

The twenty-seven years he spent in Gethsemani brought about profound changes in his self-understanding. This ongoing conversion impelled him into the political arena, where he became, according to Daniel Berrigan, the conscience of the peace movement of the 1960's. Referring to race and peace as the two most urgent issues of our time, Merton was a strong supporter of the nonviolent civil rights movement, which he called "certainly the greatest example of Christian faith in action in the social history of the United States." For his social activism Merton endured severe criticism, from Catholics and non-Catholics alike, who assailed his political writings as unbecoming of a monk.

During his last years, he became deeply interested in Asian religions, particularly Zen Buddhism, and in promoting East-West dialogue. After several meetings with Merton during the American monk's trip to the Far East in 1968, the Dali Lama praised him as having a more profound understanding of Buddhism than any other Christian he had known. It was during this trip to a conference on East-West monastic dialogue that Merton died, in Bangkok on December 10, 1968, the victim of an accidental electrocution. The date marked the twenty-seventh anniversary of his entrance to Gethsemani.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant early Merton, June 4, 2001

By 

A. Hogan (Brooklyn, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Entering the Silence: Becoming a Monk and a Writer (Journals of Thomas Merton) (Paperback)

Thomas Merton's journals take up here in the momonastery in Gethsemani abbey in Kentucky in the 1940"s. An expurgated version of these entries has previously been published as THE SIGN OF JONAS,my personal favorite before the publication in the late 1990's of these unexpurgated diaries.Here we see the dutiful young monk, full of the zeal of the newly converted, seeing all of his brothers as "signs of God's wonder and Mercy." Needless to say, the tomne shifts slightly as the aura of conversion wears a bit, and Merton is given time to write. One of his most famous pieces done while he was on watch in the abbeys fire tower is included here, without the editing. Firewatch in and of itself is worth the price of the book. We begin to see here Mertons wish for a life of more seclusion, and here he mentions the Carthusians and the camaldolese as possible places he could find that solitude.{a wish that he held,apparantly until the end of his life]Merton's insaitable curiousity,his honesty in dealing with himself and his foibles, and his crystaline perceptions on the life of the spirit are being formed here in this volume. Indispensible for Merton fans, and welcomed to any who seek the path trod by a spiritual giant, and a very honest man.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very warm, human effort showing the man the way he was., July 10, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Entering the Silence: Becoming a Monk and a Writer (Journals of Thomas Merton) (Paperback)

When Thomas Merton retreated from the civilized mainstream to enter the Trappist Monastery at Gethsemani, an unknowing observer might view his spiritual struggle as ending, becoming completely lost in the routine of monastic life, its repetition and overt acceptance of spiritual discipline. The battle against personal desire versus group obedience to higher powers beyond flesh and blood one would assume to have been a forgone conclusion. Merton brilliantly shows us, however, that within the souls of men the battle still rages. And it is how he dealt with that struggle that makes this book so marvelous. His caring and loving approach to life and others is tempered with griping about the choir's proficiency, the demands of writing within the monastic framework, the lack of understanding by superiors and comrades in spiritual arms concerning his shifting spiritual needs, for solitude, quiet and letting God sort things out for him, vice pushing his own, highly tempered will into the whirling mixture that made up this complex, brilliant man. The writing is first rate, his descriptions of the surrounding countryside are marvelously genuine as is his analyis of himself and his motives. (like to move onto a more strict, Carthusian order to reach the apotheosis of perfect contemplation). This book is a good building block for future reading of this author and I would recommend reading the entire biography/journals before even wandering into the not so clearly written efforts of Merton's theological books. Many thanks to the publisher for finally making such great writing available!!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Merton: The battle between Monk & Man, October 13, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: Entering the Silence: Becoming a Monk and a Writer (Journals of Thomas Merton) (Paperback)

The second of Merton's private journals in a series of seven, editor John Montaldo brings out the struggle that Thomas Merton, already a noted writer and critic, endured during his earliest monastic days (1940-early 1950s). Merton tackles a sort-of internal battle between the man who writes in the wee hours, and communicates with his New York society friends (among them was poet Mark van Doren!), and the monk who seeks to live out the Rule of St. Benedict to its fullest extent. First time Merton readers might be lost, but Montaldo skillfully fills in the details so that all readers will be able to focus on the struggle between man and Creator. Seasoned Merton fans will be given a deeper appreciation for the writer and devout monastic that emerged as a result of that internal confrontation. Not something to pass over!