“Recommended Merton Readings”
by an unknown source
I’m working my way through the journals (pictured above) of the Trappist monk Father M. Louis, OCSO, a.k.a. Thomas Merton. His seven journals cover the years 1939-1968 and total 2,868 pages. The research is part of a larger project focused on a particular aspect of the life of this popular and prolific Christian writer.
I purchased most of the volumes online from a used book website, which has always proven economical, but there is an ancillary benefit: they often come with a surprise tucked away between the pages by the previous owner — unique bookmarks, business cards, handwritten notes, receipts, etc.
In one acquisition I found the following typewritten note inside. I tend to agree with the assessment of the unknown critic.
If you haven’t read any of Merton, consider reading The Seven Storey Mountain first — even if it’s the only book of his you ever read.
I've spent the last ten years or so listening to the audio recordings of Merton's mostly Sunday sessions — him teaching the novices and young monks at Gethsemane. I have about 150 of them downloaded and listen to them repeatedly. I would love to embellish those nuggets with his journals. That's a great idea. Thank you. His books seem less personal when I read them. Listening to his teachings has been mesmerizing. The journals must carry the same weight of his personality as his voice.
I agree that his orthodoxy has been a surprise. Or maybe I'm reading that reaction into your statement. So much of the commentary before I began listening to his audio files positioned Merton as a radical, like Dorothy Day's misunderstood interpretation by secular or ideology-based folks. His reactions to the Vatican II developments were marvelous, full of shock and worry and hope.