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| Thomas Merton and Daniel Berrigan |
CONTEMPLATION IS ACTION
Not too long ago, a priest told me that he cancelled his subscription
to the New York Times because he felt that the endless stories about war,
crime, power games, and political manipulation only disturbed his mind and
heart and prevented him from meditation and prayer.
That is a very sad story because it suggests that only by denying the
world can you live in it, that only by surrounding yourself by an artificial,
self-induced quietude can you live in a spiritual life. A real spiritual life
does exactly the opposite: it makes us so alert of the world around us, that
all that is and happens becomes part of our contemplation and meditation and
invites us to a free and fearless response.
—Henri Nouwen, Reaching Out (2013), pages 50-51
We must engage the world but not allow the world to dictate the terms
of our engagement. Silence and solitude, time with God are means of union with
God, not escapism. Christ did not escape from the world. He entered the world
in order to redeem it.
Photo courtesy of Jim Forest
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Gonzalinho
Merton was not the cloistered monk of convention. As a professional writer obliged by obedience, he actively engaged the world in his public writing. He transformed and expanded our understanding of monastic spirituality as a result.
ReplyDeleteGonzalinho
I find the present condition of the world very disturbing, distressing even. Support of abortion in the West, totalitarianism outside the West, and endless war. It’s matter for constant prayer. It affects us—the Philippines and myself—directly.
ReplyDeleteGonzalinho
The monk in the world is active in the world, living out their Christian spirit and faith.
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