Citing Merton and Day, Pope Francis once again turns attention to the peripheries

Last updated on: September 24, 2015 at 10:32 am by Deacon Greg Kandra

Citing Merton and Day, Pope Francis once again turns attention to the peripheries 2015-09-24T10:32:19-04:00 Deacon Greg Kandra

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

When Pope Francis delivered his stirring speech to Congress this morning, he made particular mention of two American Catholics—and the two he chose probably raised a few eyebrows.

Rather than spotlighting well-known American saints—say, Elizabeth Seton orFrances Cabrini—the Holy Father singled out two converts of the modern era, Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton. Both are hardly uncontroversial, and both have been more or less dismissed by certain factions in the American Church. To many, they dwell in the peripheries of mainstream Catholic thought. In a way, this was the pope putting his personal imprimatur on these two souls. (It’s worth noting that both were also writers; at the very least, Pope Francis giving them an endorsement will be very good news for their publishers.)

As TIME magazine notes:

Dorothy Day was the founder of the Catholic Worker Movement, who used her faith to work for social justice. In 1940, TIME noted that, “Among U. S. Christians who care for the poor, none are more blessed with selfless zeal than those Roman Catholics who labor in the Catholic Worker movement.”

Though she was raised Episcopalian and became an agnostic in her youth, as she “took a Marxist lover, joined the young labor movement and wrote for far-left newspapers like the Masses,” a relationship and the birth of her daughter led to the church. In the 1930s, in the depths of the Depression, she launched the periodical The Catholic Worker and a philosophy to go along with it: pro-union, anti-poverty, pacifist, anti-government. She even went so far as to refer to it as anarchism, believing that individuals could be empowered to do good on their own.

She is also notable for having had an abortion before her conversion—and for telling an interviewer near the end of her life, “Don’t call me a saint. I don’t want to be dismissed that easily.” She died in 1980 and is buried on Staten Island. New York’s Cardinal Timothy Dolan has been actively promoting her cause for sainthood.

As for Merton:

Merton, who came from a similarly non-Catholic background, became a Trappist monk and best-selling author who encouraged peace. As his 1968 TIME obituary made clear, his focus was parallel to Day’s—he “found in the Word a command to do”—but it was through writing that he shared his philosophy with the world.

When The Seven Storey Mountain was first published, TIME called it a “perceptive, quietly stirring” reminder that “the most mystical human beings are often among the most practical as well.”

While Day’s activism was very much tied to the 1930s moment in which she got her start, with its focus on workers and soup kitchens, Merton’s fit perfectly with the post-World War II world in which his autobiographical debut was published. Though Merton lived the life of a near-hermit for many years, he became fascinated by Zen Buddhism and Tibetan monastic practices right about when the Beatles did too, and he participated in protests against the Vietnam War.

Though their lives took very different paths, Day’s and Merton’s callings overlapped significantly, with a concentration on anti-poverty and pro-peace activism. In light of that parallel, one they share with another famous Catholic, it’s no wonder Pope Francis would have mentioned their names.

The inclusion of Merton in the Holy Father’s speech was something I found particularly moving. Merton played a prominent role in my own vocation, and The Seven Storey Mountain remains for me a well-thumbed guide to one man’s spiritual journey; my copy is blotched with scribbles, notes, underlinings and, here and there, I think, a few tear stains.

But there is also a sense of redemption and rehabilitation here. Pope Francis, with this speech, has reclaimed Merton for the Church, after the monk was marginalized a few years back. In 2005, the U.S. bishops were putting together an American catechism—and they chose to exclude Merton:

The final draft removed the Trappist monk and author Thomas Merton, who was originally the opening story. Every bishop on the committee had read Merton’s bestselling 1949 autobiography about his journey from atheism to faith and thought he was an excellent example of a young American searching for God. But Merton, who died in 1968, is rejected by conservative Catholics who believe his later interest in Buddhist forms of prayer compromised his faith.

The main reason Merton was removed was because “the generation we were speaking to had no idea who he was,” Wuerl said. “Only secondarily did we take into consideration that we don’t know all the details of the searching at the end of his life.”

If anyone didn’t know who Merton was a decade ago, thanks to Pope Francis, they do now.

Both Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton speak to our own age: modern day converts struggling on the road to holiness, seekers on a journey, pilgrims straining to behold the face of God among the suffering Other. They have much to teach the world today. Thanks to Francis, more may now be willing to listen and learn.

Pope

Thomas Merton

Previous Post

September 24, 2015

Archbishop sanctions priest who attended woman’s ordination conference

Next Post

September 24, 2015 Pope Francis salutes four great Americans: Lincoln, King, Day and Merton

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category "Mad Men" 9/11 advent All Things New Amazing video amazing videos amazon america Anglicans Anti-Catholicism art ascension thursday ash wednesday Atheists baltimore Bible Bishops Blogging bonnie engstrom Books bridgeport Brooklyn Chaplains children christian art christmas Church Churches CNEWA Converts criticism Deacons Death Penalty easter eastern christian Eastern Christians Ecumenism education Education Eucharist Europe euthanasia Evangelization Exorcism Family Feasts Gay rights Good Friday Great links Great Moments in Journalism Hanging with the saints heather renshaw Hispanic Catholics Hispanics History homelies Homilies Humor Hymn of the Week Immigration indianapolis Inspiration Interfaith news ireland Jesus Jews Journalism Judaism lent Liturgy logos Marriage Mary Media Medical news Mental health Middle East Monks Movies Music Muslims My world and welcome to it New Evangelization new york News Nuns Parenting Parish life peoria Persecution politics Politics Pope pope francis pope john paul Prayer Preaching Priests Pro-life Quote of the day radio rebecca frech ripp Ripped from the headlines rippred from the headlines Sacraments saints Scripture sex abuse Sex abuse crisis SEX ABUSE CRISIS TAGGED WITH: SEX ABUSE CRISIS The people in the pews the visitation project theatre This & that Thomas Merton Trappists TV Uncategorized uncategorized Vatican VATICAN vocation Vocations Voices & Views Women Worth a thousand words Writing Year of Faith year of mercy young people

Select a Month December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What fruit did Adam and Eve eat in the Garden of Eden?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Lemon Banana Forbidden fruit Grape

Books by This Author Books by Deacon Greg Kandra

See All Titles »