Thomas Merton

Feast of Mary Sumner, Founder of the Mothers' Union, 1921 We must be willing to accept the bitter read more

Feast of Mary Sumner, Founder of the Mothers' Union, 1921 We must be willing to accept the bitter truth that, in the end, we may have to become a burden to those who love us. But it is necessary that we face this also. The full acceptance of our abjection and uselessness is the virtue that can make us and others rich in the grace of God. It takes heroic charity and humility to let others sustain us when we are absolutely incapable of sustaining ourselves. We cannot suffer well unless we see Christ everywhere, both in suffering and in the charity of those who come to the aid of our affliction.

Prayer is the movement of trust, of gratitude, of adoration, or of sorrow, that places us before God, seeing both read more

Prayer is the movement of trust, of gratitude, of adoration, or of sorrow, that places us before God, seeing both Him and ourselves in the light of His infinite truth, and moves us to ask Him for the mercy, the spiritual strength, the material help, that we all need. The man whose prayer is so pure that he never asks God for anything does not know who God is, and does not know who he is himself: for he does not know his own need of God. All true prayer somehow confesses our absolute dependence on the Lord of life and death. It is, therefore, a deep and vital contact with Him whom we know not only as Lord but as Father. It is when we pray truly that we really are. Our being is brought to a high perfection by this.

By reading the scriptures I am so renewed that all nature seems renewed around me and with me. The sky read more

By reading the scriptures I am so renewed that all nature seems renewed around me and with me. The sky seems to be a pure, a cooler blue, the trees a deeper green. The whole world is charged with the glory of God and I feel fire and music under my feet.

The whole idea of compassion is based on a keen awareness of the interdependence of all these living beings, which read more

The whole idea of compassion is based on a keen awareness of the interdependence of all these living beings, which are all part of one another, and all involved in one another.

Commemoration of Lanfranc, Prior of Le Bec, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1089 Prayer and love are learned in the hour read more

Commemoration of Lanfranc, Prior of Le Bec, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1089 Prayer and love are learned in the hour when prayer becomes impossible and your heart has turned to stone.