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The Courage for Truth: The Letters of Thomas Merton to Writers
In this fourth volume of correspondence, readers discover "the literary Merton," who had a passion for writing, as well as "the whole Merton"-monk, social critic, friend. Selected, edited, and with an Introduction by Christine M. Bochen; Preface by William H. Shannon; Index.
336 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 1993
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About the author
Thomas Merton
554 books1,901 followersThomas Merton, religious name M. Louis, was an American Trappist monk, writer, theologian, mystic, poet, social activist and scholar of comparative religion. In December 1941 he entered the Trappist Abbey of Gethsemani and in May 1949 he was ordained to priesthood. He was a member of the convent of the Abbey of Our Lady of Gethsemani, near Bardstown, Kentucky, living there from 1941 to his death.
Merton wrote more than 50 books in a period of 27 years, mostly on spirituality, social justice and a quiet pacifism, as well as scores of essays and reviews. Among Merton's most enduring works is his bestselling autobiography The Seven Storey Mountain (1948). His account of his spiritual journey inspired scores of World War II veterans, students, and teenagers to explore offerings of monasteries across the US. It is on National Review's list of the 100 best nonfiction books of the century.
Merton became a keen proponent of interfaith understanding, exploring Eastern religions through his study of mystic practice. His interfaith conversation, which preserved both Protestant and Catholic theological positions, helped to build mutual respect via their shared experiences at a period of heightened hostility. He is particularly known for having pioneered dialogue with prominent Asian spiritual figures, including the Dalai Lama XIV; Japanese writer D.T. Suzuki; Thai Buddhist monk Buddhadasa Bhikkhu, and Vietnamese monk Thich Nhat Hanh. He traveled extensively in the course of meeting with them and attending international conferences on religion. In addition, he wrote books on Zen Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism, and how Christianity is related to them. This was highly unusual at the time in the United States, particularly within the religious orders.
Merton wrote more than 50 books in a period of 27 years, mostly on spirituality, social justice and a quiet pacifism, as well as scores of essays and reviews. Among Merton's most enduring works is his bestselling autobiography The Seven Storey Mountain (1948). His account of his spiritual journey inspired scores of World War II veterans, students, and teenagers to explore offerings of monasteries across the US. It is on National Review's list of the 100 best nonfiction books of the century.
Merton became a keen proponent of interfaith understanding, exploring Eastern religions through his study of mystic practice. His interfaith conversation, which preserved both Protestant and Catholic theological positions, helped to build mutual respect via their shared experiences at a period of heightened hostility. He is particularly known for having pioneered dialogue with prominent Asian spiritual figures, including the Dalai Lama XIV; Japanese writer D.T. Suzuki; Thai Buddhist monk Buddhadasa Bhikkhu, and Vietnamese monk Thich Nhat Hanh. He traveled extensively in the course of meeting with them and attending international conferences on religion. In addition, he wrote books on Zen Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism, and how Christianity is related to them. This was highly unusual at the time in the United States, particularly within the religious orders.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
January 24, 2024
Merton, a Trappist monk, was a prodigious letter writer and had a surprisingly wide range of writers, from religious writers like Jacques Maritain to popular writes such as Henry Miller and the beat poets, Lawrence Ferlinghetti and Allen Ginsberg. Other familiar names that appear are James Baldwin, Boris Pasternak, Walker Percy, and William Carlos Williams He had a particular interest in Latin American poets and writers and a big chunk of the book consists of letters to them. The book includes letters sent by Merton, no letters sent to him.
Merton in these letters is relaxed and informal, in contrast to much of his published work, particularly his books about religion. Religion comes up often in these letters. He writes about the “inertia of conventional religious life,” suggesting that even in a monastery, not to mention the world outside the monastery , the following of religious rules can lead to a deadening of the spirit. In contrast, in a letter to Ferlinghetti, he praises Zen Buddhism as being beyond rational thought and metaphysics and at its best is similar to the kind of Christian experience that he finds most vital
He is matter-of-fact about his life as a monk. He writes that the question of why he is a monk is like asking someone why they live in Nebraska. The reasons are many and inconclusive; at first he thought a monk’s life was his vocation, an alternative to the mindlessness of much of American and modern society, but after several decades he’s not so sure, even wonders if monasteries have any future. At t he same time, though, he appreciates the solitude and the opportunity to write without distractions.
A concern about the state of life in the Unites States occupies much of Merton’s attention. He was passionate about working for non-violent peace and was appalled by the U. S. development of the atomic bomb and the arms race with the Soviet Union. He saw greed for power and money corrupting American society, pushing out all other values.
I think Latin American culture appealed to Merton because in many ways it was still free of these corrupting influences. He was in most contact with individuals who were engaged in a struggle for justice and dignity. Most of them were poets who expressed genuine and creative responses to the difficulties of poverty in human lives. However, one major Latin writer with whom he had an extensive correspondence was Ernesto Cardenal, a Nicaraguan lberation theologian, who called himself a “Christian communist” and served as Minister of Culture in Nicaragua for nearly ten years.
Merton died from an accident in l968 at the age of 53. Nearly all of these correspondents outlived him, some living into the 21st century. It is intriguing to think of how Merton’s actions and thoughts would have evolved over the following decades. There would certainly have many more letters on issues of the day.
Merton in these letters is relaxed and informal, in contrast to much of his published work, particularly his books about religion. Religion comes up often in these letters. He writes about the “inertia of conventional religious life,” suggesting that even in a monastery, not to mention the world outside the monastery , the following of religious rules can lead to a deadening of the spirit. In contrast, in a letter to Ferlinghetti, he praises Zen Buddhism as being beyond rational thought and metaphysics and at its best is similar to the kind of Christian experience that he finds most vital
He is matter-of-fact about his life as a monk. He writes that the question of why he is a monk is like asking someone why they live in Nebraska. The reasons are many and inconclusive; at first he thought a monk’s life was his vocation, an alternative to the mindlessness of much of American and modern society, but after several decades he’s not so sure, even wonders if monasteries have any future. At t he same time, though, he appreciates the solitude and the opportunity to write without distractions.
A concern about the state of life in the Unites States occupies much of Merton’s attention. He was passionate about working for non-violent peace and was appalled by the U. S. development of the atomic bomb and the arms race with the Soviet Union. He saw greed for power and money corrupting American society, pushing out all other values.
I think Latin American culture appealed to Merton because in many ways it was still free of these corrupting influences. He was in most contact with individuals who were engaged in a struggle for justice and dignity. Most of them were poets who expressed genuine and creative responses to the difficulties of poverty in human lives. However, one major Latin writer with whom he had an extensive correspondence was Ernesto Cardenal, a Nicaraguan lberation theologian, who called himself a “Christian communist” and served as Minister of Culture in Nicaragua for nearly ten years.
Merton died from an accident in l968 at the age of 53. Nearly all of these correspondents outlived him, some living into the 21st century. It is intriguing to think of how Merton’s actions and thoughts would have evolved over the following decades. There would certainly have many more letters on issues of the day.
May 23, 2021
Worked through this over a couple yrs. Left it...came back to it (a couple times).
I continue to be intrigued by Merton's vocational arc -- something I feel an uncertain affinity with, and will consult moving forward.
I admire his intellectual and spiritual curiosity -- his unrelenting critique of self and institution alike.
And I appreciate his candor, which saw him interpret historical and cultural realities in ways that resound for our time today. Isn't that the measure of a "true" writer???
[writing to Boris Pasternak in 1958]
"...the great business of our time is this: for one [person] to find [themselves] in another one who is on the other side of the world. Only by such contacts can there be peace, can the sacredness of life be preserved and developed and the image of God manifest itself in the world."
[writing to Margaret Randall in 1967]
"We have our life's work cut out for us just keeping real. The tragedy is to suppose that a society, an institution, a cause, or even a Church, will do the job for us."
I continue to be intrigued by Merton's vocational arc -- something I feel an uncertain affinity with, and will consult moving forward.
I admire his intellectual and spiritual curiosity -- his unrelenting critique of self and institution alike.
And I appreciate his candor, which saw him interpret historical and cultural realities in ways that resound for our time today. Isn't that the measure of a "true" writer???
[writing to Boris Pasternak in 1958]
"...the great business of our time is this: for one [person] to find [themselves] in another one who is on the other side of the world. Only by such contacts can there be peace, can the sacredness of life be preserved and developed and the image of God manifest itself in the world."
[writing to Margaret Randall in 1967]
"We have our life's work cut out for us just keeping real. The tragedy is to suppose that a society, an institution, a cause, or even a Church, will do the job for us."
February 3, 2025
Reading "The Courage for Truth" felt like eavesdropping on some of the most electric conversations of the 20th century. Thomas Merton, supposedly cloistered in his Kentucky monastery, carried on these passionate exchanges about art, faith, and revolution with writers scattered across the globe.
What struck me most were his letters to Czesław Miłosz - you can feel the current running between these two great minds of the 20th century, recognizing each other across a vast divide. Their correspondence about exile, both spiritual and physical, about the role of the poet in times of crisis, were revelatory. The letters reveal Merton not as some remote contemplative, but as a man urgently engaged with the world, wrestling with questions that feel startlingly relevant today.
The exchanges with Boris Pasternak have this incredible tenderness, while his letters to Latin American poets burn with revolutionary fire. What emerges is a portrait of friendship as a kind of radical act - these deep connections forged through words alone, reaching across iron curtains and ocean distances. The book left me thinking about how rare this kind of intellectual intimacy has become in our age and how terribly sad that is.
These letters show what's possible when minds meet on the page with total honesty and fierce attention. It's not just correspondence; it's communion.
What struck me most were his letters to Czesław Miłosz - you can feel the current running between these two great minds of the 20th century, recognizing each other across a vast divide. Their correspondence about exile, both spiritual and physical, about the role of the poet in times of crisis, were revelatory. The letters reveal Merton not as some remote contemplative, but as a man urgently engaged with the world, wrestling with questions that feel startlingly relevant today.
The exchanges with Boris Pasternak have this incredible tenderness, while his letters to Latin American poets burn with revolutionary fire. What emerges is a portrait of friendship as a kind of radical act - these deep connections forged through words alone, reaching across iron curtains and ocean distances. The book left me thinking about how rare this kind of intellectual intimacy has become in our age and how terribly sad that is.
These letters show what's possible when minds meet on the page with total honesty and fierce attention. It's not just correspondence; it's communion.
June 19, 2020
I skipped a fair bit, but as usual Merton's words makes clear his passion and brilliance.
February 13, 2013
Wonderful exchanges between Merton and other writers, including Evelyn Waugh who edited many of Merton's books for British publication. Highly recommended.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews