Thomas Merton,
who lived from 1915 to 1968 was an American writer and Trappist monk at
Our Lady of Gethsemani Abbey in Trappist, Kentucky. His writings
include such classics as The Seven Story Mountain (1941), which remains in print after more than fifty years, New Seeds Of Contemplation (1974) and Zen And The Birds Of Appetite (1968).
Merton is the author of more than seventy books that include poetry,
personal journals, collections of letters, social criticism and
writings on peace, social justice and ecumenicism. He is distinguished
among most contemporary spiritual writers by the depth and substance of
his thinking. He distilled the best ideas and concepts of the best
theologians, philosophers and poets throughout the centuries, from both
the West and the East. He presented their thinking in the context of
the Christian worldview.
Thomas Merton is widely
acclaimed as one of the most influential American spiritual writers of
the past century. Thousands of readers have drawn strength from his
words as well as the witness of his life, which was essentially the
living out of a contemplative vision. His autobiography, The Seven Story Mountain (1978) appears on lists of the 100 most important books of the century.