Thomas Merton
Thomas Merton (1915–68) was an American Trappist monk, writer, theologian, mystic, poet, social activist, and scholar of comparative religion. He wrote numerous books on spirituality, social justice, and comparative religion, as well as journals, poetry, and countless essays and reviews.
Books by Thomas Merton (in Chronological Order)
The Seven Storey Mountain (1948; London: Sheldon Press, 1975).
Bread in the Wilderness (1953; New York: New Directions, 1997).
No Man Is an Island (1955; San Diego: Harcourt, 1978).
Thoughts in Solitude (1956; London: Burns & Oates, 1997).
New Seeds of Contemplation (1962; New York: New Directions, 2007).
Raids on the Unspeakable (1964; Tunbridge Wells: Burns & Oates, 1977).
*Seeds of Destruction (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1964).
Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander (1968; New York: Image, 2014).
*‡Faith and Violence: Christian Teaching and Christian Practice (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1968).
*Zen and the Birds of Appetite (New York: New Directions, 1968).
The Way of Chuang Tzu (1969; New York: New Directions, 2010).
Where Prayer Flourishes (1969; London: Canterbury Press, 2018).
The Wisdom of the Desert: Sayings from the Desert Fathers of the Fourth Century (New York: New Directions, 1970).
Contemplative Prayer (1973; London Darton, Longman and Todd, 2005).
*The Asian Journal of Thomas Merton (ed. Naomi Burton, Patrick Hart, and James Laughlin; New York: New Directions, 1973).
*The Monastic Journey (London: Sheldon Press, 1977).
*The Collected Poems of Thomas Merton (New York: New Directions, 1977).
Woods, Shore, Desert: A Notebook, May 1968 (Santa Fe, NM: Museum of New Mexico Press, 1982).
*The Hidden Ground of Love: The Letters of Thomas Merton on Religious Experience and Social Concerns (ed. William H. Shannon; London: Collins Flame, 1985).
*‡The Springs of Contemplation: A Retreat at the Abbey of Gethsemani (ed. Jane Marie Richardson; 1992; New York: Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 2011).
*Passion for Peace: The Social Essays (ed. William H. Shannon; New York: Crossroad, 1995).
*Run to the Mountain: The Story of a Vocation (ed. Patrick Hart; The Journals of Thomas Merton, 1; New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 1995).
*Entering the Silence: Becoming a Monk and Writer (ed. Jonathan Montaldo; The Journals of Thomas Merton, 2; New York: HarperOne, 1995).
*A Search for Solitude: Pursuing the Monk’s Life (ed. Lawrence S. Cunningham; The Journals of Thomas Merton, 3; New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 1996).
*Turning toward the World: The Pivotal Years (ed. Victor A. Kramer; The Journals of Thomas Merton, 4; New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 1996).
*Dancing in the Water of Life: Seeking Peace in the Hermitage (ed. Robert E. Daggy; The Journals of Thomas Merton, 5; New York: HarperOne, 1997).
Learning to Love: Exploring Solitude and Freedom (ed. Christine M. Bochen; The Journals of Thomas Merton, 6; New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 1997).
*The Other Side of the Mountain: The End of the Journey (ed. Patrick Hart; The Journals of Thomas Merton, 7; New York: HarperOne, 1998).
Dialogues with Silence: Prayers and Drawings (ed. Jonathan Montaldo; New York: HarperOne, 2001).
When the Trees Say Nothing: Writings on Nature (ed. Kathleen Deignan; Notre Dame, IN: Sorin, 2003).
A Life in Letters: The Essential Collection (ed. William H. Shannon and Christine M. Bochen; Oxford: Lion, 2009).
*A Course in Christian Mysticism: Thirteen Sessions with the Famous Trappist Monk (ed. Jon M. Sweeney; Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2017).
*‡Come into the Silence (Notre Dame, IN: Ave Maria Press, 2021).
*‡Notes on Genesis and Exodus: Novitiate Conferences on Scripture and Liturgy (ed. Patrick F. O’Connell; Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2021).
Books about Thomas Merton (in Alphabetical Order)
Dear, John, Thomas Merton, Peacemaker: Meditations on Merton, Peacemaking, and the Spiritual Life (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 2015).
*‡Dekar, Paul R., Thomas Merton: Twentieth-Century Wisdom for Twenty-First Century Living (Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2011).
*Forest, Jim, The Root of War Is Fear: Thomas Merton’s Advice to Peacemakers (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 2016).
*Furlong, Monica, Merton: A Biography (1980; London: SPCK, 1995).
Grayston, Donald, Thomas Merton and the Noonday Demon: The Camaldoli Correspondence (Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2015).
Harnetty, Brian, Words and Silences: From the Hermitage Tapes of Thomas Merton (Columbus, OH: Winesap, 2022).
*‡Hillis, Gregory K., Man of Dialogue: Thomas Merton’s Catholic Vision (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2021).
*Hudson, Robert, The Monk’s Record Player: Thomas Merton, Bob Dylan, and the Perilous Summer of 1966 (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2018).
James, Keith, Mission-Shaped Hermit: Thomas Merton, Mission and Spirituality (Cambridge: Grove, 2009).
*McDonnell, Thomas P. (ed.), A Thomas Merton Reader (1974; New York: Image, 1989).
‡Morgan, Bill, Thomas Merton, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, and the Protection of All Beings: The Correspondence (Temple, PA: Beatdom, 2022).
Moses, John (ed.), The Art of Thomas Merton: A Divine Passion in Word and Vision (Cincinnati, OH, Franciscan, 2018).
Oyer, Gordon, Signs of Hope: Thomas Merton’s Letters on Race, Peace, and Ecology (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 2021).
Pramuk, Christopher, At Play in Creation: Merton’s Awakening to the Feminine Divine (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2015).
*Pramuk, Christopher, Sophia: The Hidden Christ of Thomas Merton (Collegeville, MN: Michael Glazier, 2009).
Scott, Sophronia, The Seeker and the Monk: Everyday Conversations with Thomas Merton (Minneapolis, MN: Broadleaf, 2021).
‡Smelcer, John, Enacting Love: How Thomas Merton Died for Peace (Kirksville, MO: Naciketas Press, 2022).
Waldon, Robert, Thomas Merton: The Exquisite Risk of Love: The Chronicle of a Monastic Romance (London: Darton, Longman and Todd, 2012).
‡Weis, Monica, and Hinkle, Harry L., Thomas Merton’s Gethsemani: Landscapes of Paradise (Lexington, KY: The University Press of Kentucky, 2005).
*Williams, Rowan, A Silent Action: Engagements with Thomas Merton (2011; London: SPCK, 2013).
Articles about Thomas Merton
The Merton Annual: Studies in Culture, Spirituality and Social Concerns.
The Merton Journal.
The Merton Seasonal: A Quarterly Review.
Other Thomas Merton Materials
Harnetty, Brian, Words and Silences [CD] (Columbus, OH: Winesap Records, 2022).
Karl Möller 