This is soooo good ... You gotta love Thomas Merton
Thanks Lisa Girl!
The real purpose of meditation - or at least that which recommends itself as most relevant for the modern man - is the exploration and discovery of new dimensions in freedom, illumination and love, in deepening our awareness of our life in Christ.
What is the relation of this to action? Simply this. He who attempts to act and do things for others or for the world without deepening his own self-understanding, freedom, integrity and capacity to love, will not have anything to give others. He will communicate to them nothing but the contagion of his own obsessions, his agressiveness, his ego-centered ambitions, his delusions about ends and means, his doctrinaire prejudices and ideas. (Thomas Merton "Comtemplation in a World of Action.")
The real purpose of meditation - or at least that which recommends itself as most relevant for the modern man - is the exploration and discovery of new dimensions in freedom, illumination and love, in deepening our awareness of our life in Christ.
What is the relation of this to action? Simply this. He who attempts to act and do things for others or for the world without deepening his own self-understanding, freedom, integrity and capacity to love, will not have anything to give others. He will communicate to them nothing but the contagion of his own obsessions, his agressiveness, his ego-centered ambitions, his delusions about ends and means, his doctrinaire prejudices and ideas. (Thomas Merton "Comtemplation in a World of Action.")
4 Comments:
Sheri,
I'm taking the best class ever - it almost makes me sorry it's ending and I'm graduating. That's where I got the Merton quote from and the woman's creed we talked about, and information on all kinds of other crazy and interesting stuff. Glad you liked it!
Lisa
Who's Thomas Merton?
Simply brilliant. What a deliberate, tenacious approach to life, eh (just in case you missed hearing that, eh)? Good stuff!
You're on a role, two posts in a row have been freakin' awesome!
Thanks for the emails!
Hello! Hope yer enjoying the warmth down there!
[by the bye, my fish are definately in two separate bowls the smaller is in the larger one but they are separated]
Just wanted to say that reading your thoughts on here has been both blessings and challenges in my day...so thank you for sharing them!
so uh... birthday party for Jesus at Sheri's place? I'll bring the birthday cake!
Hope you are enjoying the season Sheri! Miss ya.
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