Thomas Merton has been rightly called “one of the most influential Catholic authors of the 20th century,”1 but his influence has spread far beyond the limits of the Catholic population. The endurance and diversity of his influence is due in large part to the strict observance of The Rule of St. Benedict Merton practiced at The Abbey of Our Lady of Gethsemani, the monastery where he spent his 27 years as a monk.
Merton was no stranger to the disciplines of the spiritual life. As a monk, the spiritual disciplines would have been his main focus. As a Trappist monk in particular, silence and solitude were two disciplines he practiced constantly. These were wellsprings of insight for Merton and he directed the flow into a body of work that can easily be described as prolific.
To understand Merton and his writings, we must first examine his daily life. Next we will examine how his spirituality was formed and practiced in the context of this disciplined life by an analysis of his book Thoughts In Solitude. We will then look at the extent of his influence on other people of influence and conclude with some personal reflections.
Go to: Part 1|Part 2|Part 3|Part 4|Part 5|The Thomas Merton Page
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1 Wikipedia, “Thomas Merton,” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Merton, (accessed November 7, 2007)
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