Medieval Cistercian History: Initiation into the Monastic Tradition 9

Mar 2019 · Monastic Wisdom Series Book 43 · Liturgical Press

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392

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Thomas Merton’s deep roots in his own Cistercian tradition are on display in the two sets of conferences on the early days of the Order included in the present volume. The first surveys the relevant monastic background that led up to the foundation of the Abbey of Cîteaux in 1098 and goes on to consider the contributions of each of the first three abbots of the “New Monastery” that would become the epicenter of the most dynamic religious movement of the early twelfth century. The second set investigates the arc of medieval Cistercian history in the two centuries following the death of Saint Bernard, in which the Order moves from being ahead of its time, in its formative stages, to being representative of its time in its most powerful and influential phase, to becoming regressive with the rise of new religious currents that begin to flow in the thirteenth century. Merton stresses the need to respect the complexity of the actual lived reality of Cistercian life during this period, to “beware of easy generalizations” and instead consider the full range of factual data. The result is a richly nuanced picture of the development of early Cistercian life and thought that serves as a fitting concluding volume to the series of Merton’s novitiate conferences providing a thorough “Initiation into the Monastic Tradition.”

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About the author

Thomas Merton (1915-1968), Catholic convert, Cistercian monk and hermit, poet, contemplative, social critic, and pioneer of interreligious dialogue, was a seminal figure of twentieth-century American Christianity.

Patrick F. O’Connell, emeritus professor of English and theology at Gannon University, Erie, Pennsylvania, is a founding member and former president of the International Thomas Merton Society, longtime editor of The Merton Seasonal, and copy editor of The Merton Annual. He has edited sixteen volumes of Merton materials, including twelve volumes of Merton’s monastic conferences (2005–2022) as well as Selected Essays (2013) and Merton and Confucianism (2021). He is also co-author with Christine M. Bochen and William H. Shannon of the award-winning Thomas Merton Encyclopedia (2002).

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