Dialogues with Silence: Prayers and Drawings - Hardcover

Thomas Merton

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0060656026 ISBN 13: 9780060656027

Publisher: HarperOne, 2001

Synopsis

Thomas Merton loved life with the passion of a romantic poet. At the age of twenty-six he chose to become a Trappist monk and began to pursue his ultimate, lifelong passion. From his austere quarters at Our Lady of Gethsemani Abbey in Trappist, Kentucky, Merton worked to change the world and to come closer to his God. The drawings and prayers in this volume are the intimate, beautifully rendered record of that pursuit -- Merton's dialogue with God. The prayers have been gathered from all of Merton's writings -- his books, journals, letters -- and are collected here, along with his largely unknown drawings, for the first time.

In his drawings we see the evolution of Merton's art from purely representational to the more abstract, reflecting his interest in Zen andEastern cultures. It is easy to see that art was in his genes; both of his parents were artists. With each prayer and in every brushstroke, we sensethe depth of Merton's passion as we pause and incline our ear to his voice offering these heartfelt songs to God and to the world. Dialogues with Silenceinvites the reader to enter into that sacred realm of contemplation where we listen in silence and await the divine presence in our lives, where emptiness becomes the juncture for the interchange between the outer and inner worlds, where darkness is transformed into light -- the place where the voice of God is revealed.

About this title

Review:

Though best known for his spiritual writings, Thomas Merton also made drawings, whose Eastern-style brushwork have a meditative power rivaling that of his finest prayers. In Dialogues with Silence, these (mostly unpublished) drawings--of human figures, churches, the crucifixion, and abstract forms--are paired on pages with the texts of his well-known prayers. Editor Jonathan Montaldo's introduction to this volume asserts that Merton, the author of classics including The Seven Storey Mountain, became a:

witness for his generation of the way out of self-defeating individualism by tracking anew the boundaries of that ancient other country, whose citizens recognize a hidden ground of unity and love among all living things.

He might have added that, for Merton, one direct escape from individualism was the act of loving other individuals, an aspect of Merton's character that shines clearly in the many portraits here. Notably, the most arresting of these images is a face without features. It hovers next to a prayer that begins, "O God, my God, why am I so mute?" --Michael Joseph Gross

About the Author:

Thomas Merton (1915-1968) is widely regarded as one of the most influential spiritual writers of modern times. He was a Trappist monk, writer, and peace and civil rights activist. His bestselling books include The Seven-Storey Mountain, New Seeds of Contemplation, and Mystics and Zen Masters.

About this edition

• Publisher: HarperOne
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0060656026
• ISBN 13: 9780060656027
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 208
• Editor: Jonathan Montaldo
• Illustrator: Thomas Merton