The New Man (Paperback)

by Thomas Merton (Author) "Life and death are at war within us..." (more)
Key Phrases: existential communion, supernatural union, supernatural life, Holy Spirit, Spirit of God, God Himself (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
The New Man shows Thomas Merton at the height of his powers and has as its theme the question of spiritual identity. What must we do to recover possession of our true selves? By way of an answer, Merton discusses how we have become strangers to ourselves by our depence on outward identity and success, while our real need is for a concern with the image of God in ourselves. At a time of retrieval of our religious traditions, Merton's voice is both intelligent and spiritually compelling.Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk, is perhaps the foremost spiritual thinker of the twentiethcentury. His diaries, social commentary, and spiritual writings continue to be widely read after his untimely death in 1968.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (November 29, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0374514445
• ISBN-13: 978-0374514440
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #321,964 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Merton's Christology is exemplary, August 28, 1998

By A Customer

In this treatise, Cistercian monk Fr. Thomas Merton attempts to show, in clear and concise language, why Jesus Christ is the New Adam, the New Man; in turn, he exhorts the reader to find the element of the New Man in her/himself. This lucid and direct theological work is not one his most popular, yet brings forward the orthodox doctrine of Original Sin and the redemptive force of the Incarnation. Merton's direct approach and literary background serve him well here. This is one of my favorite books.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A masterpiece of spiritual thought, August 26, 2001

By	Brad Shorr "Word Sell, Inc." (Geneva, IL USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This book might truly change your view of life because it leads you to examine the deepest parts of your soul. In plain language that's very easy to follow, Merton describes how we can abandon our self-absorbed lives and then discover again our true selves in Jesus Christ. It is a book about the transforming power of God, and although it is deeply spiritual in tone and theme, it is highly logical and straightforward in style and structure. Merton hopes to lead us to transformation and salvation not through fear or blind hope, but by persuasion.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars New Wine Revives Old Wine Skins, April 3, 2006

By	Crazy Fox (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

First I read Merton's "Mystics and Zen Masters" just out of curiosity--How does this Christian monk see the monastic tradition of Zen Buddhism? I found his writing on this subject so compelling that I wanted to find out more about the author himself and read "The Seven Storey Mountain". Then I was so moved by this guy's long and arduous spiritual journey that I just had to see what he had to say about his own tradition, Christianity...and so I read this book, "The New Man", and wasn't dissappointed.
In one way this book is an extended meditation on Saint Paul's idea of Christ being the New Adam, and of what this idea really means for us. Merton has an uncanny ability to take old, familiar passages from the Bible--passages that have become dull and opaque in their very familiarity--and breath new spiritual life into them; they come alive with a significance and relevance you never really thought about before, but that seem natural and unforced after the fact. And he does all of this in ways that communicate eloquently with modern, educated people in today's world without strain or condescension.
In another way this book is an extended meditation on the significance of the sacrament Baptism, and again Merton is able to take what some might see as an old, tired, silly ritual and tease out its deeper spiritual significance in compelling, convincing ways. For any adult preparing for this sacrament I would highly recommend this book for that reason alone. And in general I would highly recommend this book for anyone who wants to see the Christian tradition at its best.