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Advanced embedding details, examples, and help! This volume offers a more representative sampling of the work of a prominent Catholic poet and one of the most vital American poets of the 20th century. Paul -- Trappists, working -- St. Merton read them both. Merton decided to explore Catholicism further. The ritual of Mass was foreign to him, but he listened attentively.

Following this, Merton began to read more extensively in Catholicism. On February 22,Merton received his M. Merton decided he would pursue his Ph. Monastic life On December 10,Thomas Merton arrived at the Abbey of Gethsemani and spent three days at the monastery guest house, waiting for acceptance into the Order. The novice master would come to interview Merton, gauging his sincerity and qualifications.

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In the interim, Merton was put to work polishing floors and scrubbing dishes. On December 13 he was accepted into the monastery as a postulant by Frederic Dunne, Gethsemani's abbot since Merton's first few days did not go smoothly. He had a severe cold from his stay in the guest house, where he sat in front of an open window to prove his sincerity.

During his initial weeks at Gethsemani, Merton studied the complicated Cistercian sign language and daily work and worship routine. In Marchduring the first Sunday of Lent, Merton was accepted as a novice at the monastery. In June, he received a letter from his brother John Paul stating he was soon to leave for the war and would be coming to Gethsemani to visit before leaving.

On July 17 John Paul arrived in Gethsemani and the two brothers did some catching up. John Paul expressed his desire to become Catholic, and by July 26 was baptized at a church in nearby New Haven, Kentucky, leaving the following day. This would be the last time the two saw each other. John Paul died on April 17,when his plane failed over the English Channel.

Writer Merton kept journals throughout his stay at Gethsemani. Initially, he felt writing to be at odds with his vocation, worried it would foster a tendency to individuality. But his superior, Dunne, saw that Merton had both a gifted intellect and talent for writing.

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In Merton was tasked to translate religious texts and write biographies on the saints for the monastery. Merton approached his new writing assignment with the same fervor and zeal he displayed in the farmyard. On March 19,Merton made his temporary profession of vows and was given the white cowl, black scapular and leather belt. Merton had mixed feelings about the publishing of this work, but Dunne remained resolute over Merton continuing his writing.

The Seven Storey Mountain, Merton's autobiography, was written during two-hour intervals in the monastery scriptorium as a personal project. By Merton was more comfortable in his role as a writer. On March 19 he took his solemn vows, a commitment to live out his life at the monastery. He also began corresponding with a Carthusian at St. Hugh's Charterhouse in England.

Merton had harbored an appreciation for the Carthusian Order since coming to Gethsemani inand would later come to consider leaving the Cistercians for that Order. In The Seven Storey Mountain was published to critical acclaim, with fan mail to Merton reaching new heights. Merton also published several works for the monastery that year, which were: Guide to Cistercian Life, Cistercian Contemplatives, Figures for an Apocalypse, and The Spirit of Simplicity.

Berchmans, O. Merton's abbot, Dunne, died on August 3,while riding on a train to Georgia. Dunne's passing was painful for Merton, who had come to look on the abbot as a father figure and spiritual mentor.

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In October Merton discussed with him his ongoing attraction to the Carthusian and Camaldolese Orders and their eremitical way of life, to which Fox responded by assuring Merton that he belonged at Gethsemani. Fox permitted Merton to continue his writing, Merton now having gained substantial recognition outside the monastery. On December 21 Merton was ordained as a subdeacon.

From on, Merton identified as an anarchist. On January 5,Merton took a train to Louisville and applied for American citizenship. On March 19, Merton became a deacon in the Order, and on May 26 Ascension Thursday he was ordained a priest, saying his first Mass the following day. In June, the monastery celebrated its centenary, for which Merton authored the book Gethsemani Magnificat in commemoration.

In November, Merton started teaching mystical theology to novices at Gethsemani, a duty he greatly enjoyed. By this time Merton was a huge success outside the monastery, The Seven Storey Mountain having sold overcopies. In subsequent years Merton would author many other books, amassing a wide readership. He would revise Seeds of Contemplation several times, viewing his early edition as error-prone and immature.

A person's place in society, views on social activism, and various approaches toward contemplative prayer and living became constant themes in his writings. In this particularly prolific period of his life, Merton is believed to have been suffering from a great deal of loneliness and stress. One incident indicative of this is the drive he took in the monastery's jeep, during which Merton, acting in a possibly manic state, erratically slid around the road and almost caused a head-on collision.

Hear them and come: they call you home. Death is someone you see very clearly with eyes in the center of your heart: eyes that see not by reacting to light, but by reacting to a kind of a chill from within the marrow of your own life. Poems are the property of their respective owners. All information has been reproduced here for educational and informational purposes to benefit site visitors, and is provided at no charge Thomas Merton.

Thomas Merton 31 January — 10 December Thomas Merton Poems 1. Read Poem. A Dirge. See Full List.