Thomas Merton, original name of Father M. Louis, (born January 31, 1915, Prades, France—died December 10, 1968, Bangkok, Thailand), Roman Catholic monk, poet, and prolific writer on spiritual and social themes, one of the most important American Roman Catholic writers of the 20th century.

Where did Thomas Merton live?

They lived first with Ruth’s parents in Queens, New York, and then settled near them in Douglaston. In 1917, the family moved into an old house in Flushing, Queens, where Merton’s brother John Paul was born on November 2, 1918.

Did Thomas Merton have any children?

A second son, John Paul, was born on November 2, 1918. The profile of the Merton family at this time was one of rather poor, impractical idealists, dedicated to art and peace but not notably religious. Ruth Merton contracted stomach cancer and died in 1921, when Thomas was six.

Where did Thomas Merton grow up?

Thomas Merton was born in 1915, to parents living in the French Pyrenees. His American mother, Ruth, who would die of cancer when Thomas was only six, was a Quaker and an artist, though a less ambitious one than his father, Owen.

Was Thomas Merton A convert to Catholicism?

After converting to Catholicism and entering a monastery in Kentucky, Merton became one of the most influential Catholic writers of the 20th century.

Was Thomas Merton a hermit?

Under the monarchical pontificate of Pius XII from 1939 to 1958 Merton’s writings on peace were often censored. … Thus, at age 50, Merton became the first ever hermit of Gethsemani Abbey, which had been founded by French Cistercians of the Strict Observance in 1848.

Who Isthomas Merton?

Thomas Merton, original name of Father M. Louis, (born January 31, 1915, Prades, France—died December 10, 1968, Bangkok, Thailand), Roman Catholic monk, poet, and prolific writer on spiritual and social themes, one of the most important American Roman Catholic writers of the 20th century.

What is the meaning of Merton?

English: habitational name from places called Merton in London, Devon, Norfolk, and Oxfordshire, named in Old English with mere ‘lake’, ‘pool’ + tun ‘enclosure’, ‘settlement’.

Are Trappist monks Catholic?

The Trappists, officially known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (Latin: Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae, abbreviated as OCSO) and originally named the Order of Reformed Cistercians of Our Lady of La Trappe, are a Catholic religious order of cloistered monastics that branched off from …

What was Thomas Merton's message?

Throughout his writings, Merton emphasises repeatedly that the genuine transformation of human society can never occur through violence. At best, violence begets hatred and more violence. At worst, in a nuclear age, violence results in the destruction of all life.

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Why are monks called monks?

A monk is a man who devoted part or all of his life to a religion. The word comes from Ancient Greek, and can be translated as solitary. … The monks who live on their own are usually called hermits, those living with other monks do so in monasteries. Nuns living together do so in a convent.

Was Thomas Merton a womanizer?

Merton was a troubled young man swiftly becoming a hard-drinking womanizer, eventually fathering a child (both mother and child are believed to have died during a Nazi air raid on London). His guardian settled the threat of a paternity suit against him and sent him to live with his American grandparents.

Why isnt Thomas Kempis a saint?

“And the 13th-century Thomas a Kempis, the reputed author of the great devotional work The Imitation of Christ, was never made a saint because, it was said, when they dug up his body for the ossuary they found scratch marks on the lid of his coffin and concluded that he was not reconciled to his fate.”

What county is Merton in?

Merton, outer borough of London, England, located south of Wandsworth. Merton is part of the historic county of Surrey. The present borough was established in 1965 by amalgamation of the boroughs of Mitcham and Wimbledon and the urban district of Merton and Morden.

Can nuns get pregnant?

“The most likely outcome if they will leave their religious service.” There have been previous instances in the Church of nuns becoming pregnant, but in some cases, this was not after consensual sex.

Can nuns drink?

Drinking is fine. Some wine with dinner, the occasional appertivo or digestivo, a prosecco to celebrate something – no problem. Getting drunk or drinking too much is discouraged for all Catholics, not just nuns.

What time do nuns go to bed?

17.00: Vespers, the fifth service of the day. After Vespers, the nuns would have a light supper. 19.00: Compline, the last service of the day. Following this, nuns would go straight to bed.

What is the meaning of freckled in English?

one of the small, brownish spots on the skin that are caused by deposition of pigment and that increase in number and darken on exposure to sunlight; lentigo. any small spot or discoloration: freckles of paint spattered on the floor. verb (used with object), freck·led, freck·ling. … to become freckled.

Was Thomas Merton a pacifist?

MERTON’S WRITTEN convictions against war were stronger than his personal ones. That, along with long moods of restlessness and bouts of anger at his treatment by the order, is one of the revelations of this collection. “I am no absolute pacifist,” he wrote to Monsignor John Tracy Ellis of Catholic University.

What did Merton say about God?

“Our idea of God tells us more about ourselves than about Him.”