Tag: Merton
Doctrine of Nonviolence
Here is a statement of Gandhi that sums up clearly and concisely the whole doctrine of nonviolence: “The way of peace is the way of truth.” “Truthfulness is even more important than peacefulness. Indeed, lying is the mother of violence. A truthful man cannot long remain violent. He will perceive in the course of his… Read More ›
The reason for bad news
Our over-sensitive awareness of ourselves as responsible for “making history” is a grotesque illusion, and it leads us into the morass of pseudo-events. Those who are obsessed with “making history” are responsible for the banality of the bad news which comes more and more to constitute our “history.” The Church that takes all this too… Read More ›
Amplification of news and of opinion
Today, with the enormous amplification of news and of opinion, we are suffering from more than acceptable distortions of perspective. Our supposed historical consciousness, over-informed and over stimulated, is threatened with death by bloating, and we are over come with a political elephantiasis which sometimes seems to make all actual forward motion useless if not… Read More ›
The Light of the World
All of us who have been baptized in Christ and have “put on Christ” as a new identity are bound to be holy as He is holy. We are bound to live holy lives, and our actions should bear witness to our union with Him. He should manifest His presence in us and through us…. Read More ›
Why Propaganda Succeeds
In primitive societies, where men are just beginning to read and [have] nothing to read but propaganda, we can say that they are its innocent victims. But in an evolved society there are no innocent victims of propaganda. Propaganda succeeds because men want it to succeed. It works on minds because those minds want to… Read More ›
Living with Progress
It does us no good to make fantastic progress if we do not know how to live with it, if we cannot make good use of it and if, in fact, our technology becomes nothing more than an expensive and complicated way of cultural disintegration. It is bad form to say such things, to recognize… Read More ›
Advent: I live to Christ when I die to myself
Advent for us means acceptance of this totally new beginning. It means a readiness to have eternity and time meet not only in Christ, but in us, in Man, in our life, in our world, in our time. The beginning, therefore, is the end. We must accept the end, before we can begin. Or rather,… Read More ›
Without wisdom…
Science and technology are indeed admirable in many respects, and if they fulfill their promises, they can do much for man. But they can never solve his deepest problems. On the contrary, without wisdom, without the intuition and freedom that enable man to return to the root of his being, science can only precipitate him… Read More ›
The real root-sin of modern man …
The real root-sin of modern man is that, in ignoring and condemning being, and especially his own being, he has made his existence a disease and an affliction. And, strangely, be has done this with all kinds of vitalistic excuses, proclaiming at every turn that he stands on frontiers of new abundance and permanent bliss…. Read More ›
Delusion must be refused
In proportion as he becomes authentically aware of his own plight, man confronts the absurd — and finds it not in himself or in the objective world, but “in their presence together.” Whereas he seeks to understand himself and his world by reason, he finds that the “only bond” between himself and the world is… Read More ›