The Springs of Contemplation: A Retreat at the Abbey of Gethsemani

by Thomas Merton, Jane Marie Richardson, Kathleen Norris (Foreword)

Trappis monk Thomas Merton wrestles with what it means to be a contemplative person in the 20th century. In the midst of American consumerism's choke-hold on the lives of ordinary people, how can one maintain a contemplative life? Further, how can the contemplative life be prophetic for this generation? Just a sampling of themes explored in Merton's 1967 retreat in Kentucky.

Genres: Spirituality, Theology, Prayer

207 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1992

About the author

Thomas 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.

Reviews

[William Burr · Rating 3 out of 5]

In his introduction to Seven Storey Mountain, Robert Giroux writes of Thomas Merton, "Of all the writers I’ve known—and I’ve known some great ones—none had his speed of intellectual growth, which deepened and matured as the years went by in a way that is remarkable."

After reading The Springs of Contemplation, my second Merton, a transcription of dialogue between Merton and nuns on a retreat in 1967, about two decades after he wrote Seven Storey Mountain, I agree with Giroux. I find so much less of the judgmental voice that bothered me in that other book, and more wisdom.

At the same time there is no storytelling. Since it's a transcription of dialogue, it didn't always make for riveting reading for me. But I'm grateful for the new ideas Merton introduced me to, and it leaves me with a desire to read some more of his later work.

"I think we need to develop a whole new style of worship in which there is no need for one hierarchical person to have a big central place, a form of worship in which everyone is involved."

"The ultimate lie is that there is another God and that there is another meaning than what God has given."

"...Buber says that actually what we need to do is first of all see that asceticism is completely secondary, and that asceticism isn't going to do the trick at all unless we are also supported by grace. The grace we need is the grace of unification. We have to wait until we sense that we're all of a piece before we try to do things like fasting for a whole week."

"This to me is absolutely the most helpful thing I can think of. It's what I did when I was out in California. I had every day free until evening, when we worked for about three hours. I had four days on the Pacific shore with no one in sight and nothing but water around. Doing absolutely nothing except sitting there watching the waves come in and the clouds piling up over the hills."

"Being a person is what has to be emphasized. We have the backwash of this contemplative mystique here: we're cloistered, we have to be mysterious, we have to be passive and "beautiful souls." ... We've not been allowed to be persons. A contemplative is expected to be more dedicated than anybody else to an impersonal life. We all have to fight against this."

"There are so many other things we think are more important than listening to others or giving them time."

"Self-justification is really a matter of not wanting to believe that you are loved."

"...if we trust God to act in us, God will act in us."

"The gift of God given us in our vocation is something very real and very serious, the most real and serious thing that has ever happened to any of us. We know this."

[Steven Olson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A sermon by Merton, of a sort

It is wonderful that someone recorded Merton near to his death. So much has been packaged and put into a nice neat bundle of what Merton thought. It is also great that the church is finally comfortable enough to let it out. Whether his death was an untimely accident or a convenient one will always be a mystery.

[John Angerer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of Merton's lesser known books and I found it in our church library. It comprises of a few lectures Merton gave at a convent. There were times where Merton's spiritual brilliance were clear, but the book was a bit choppy and spoke 80% of the time to the cloistered community, of which I am not a part of. It's easy to read and follow.

[Sean Deegan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Never read much of Merton so I grabbed this from the library and didn’t enjoy it that much.