I’ve been thinking about my previous post. Thomas Merton is one of my spiritual ancestors. I often refer to his Seven Storey Mountain and compare his journey with mine. Merton was a mystic and maybe only mystics really understand him. I came across one of his quotes from “Seeds of Destruction.” This speaks volumes about our lives today.
“Where there is a deep, simple, all-embracing love of man, of the created world of living and inanimate things, then there will be respect for life, for freedom, for truth, for justice and there will be humble love of God. But where there is no love of man, no love of life, then make all the laws you want, all the edicts and treaties, issue all the anathemas; set up all the safeguards and inspections, fill the air with spying satellites, and hang cameras on the moon. As long as you see your fellow man being essentially to be feared, mistrusted, hated, and destroyed, there cannot be peace on earth. And who knows if fear alone will suffice to prevent a war of total destruction?” – from “Seeds of Destruction”
Dona Nobis Pacem.