contemplative nature. Often he fell, ornthrew himself, off the wall between thentwo. His interest in Latin American poetsnwas encouraged by his friendship withnNicaraguan Trappist Ernesto Cardenal, anpoet who was for a time a novice undernMerton at Gethsemani. Merton’s fascinationnwith the tortured spirituality ofnthe Latins turned into unaitical endorsementnof all sorts of ugly political currentsnthat he almost certainly never understoodnor foresaw. Cardenal returned tonNicaragua and eventually became activenin the Marxist Sandinista movement, nondoubt telling his fellow guerrillas, whonincluded a number of priests, that anprominent American monk was defendingnthem. All Merton was defending, innhis essays on the Nicaraguan RubennDario and other Latin poets, was a vaguensearch for “social justice.” Unfortunately,nsocial justice in the underdevelopednworld is too easily translated into Marxistnrevolution.nMerton’s contemplative consciencenwas fully exercised in his literary lecturesnto the novices at Gethsemani, whichnbegan when he became Master ofnNovices in 1965. In January of 1967 henbegan his series of discussions calledn”The Classical Values in William Faulkner,”nbrilliant, often extemporaneousntalks which the monks preserved on tape.nIn Faulkner, Merton found the timelessnspirimal themes on which he patternednhis own life: repentance, religion andncreativity, resurrection. He finds in all ofnFaulkner’s work an intense spiritualitynthat glows brighter for the shabbiness ofnits surroundings. He saw in Faulkner’snwork—especially in The Bear, Requiem,nThe WildPalms, and The Sound and thenFury—a vast metaphor of the struggle fornsalvation against the violent backdrop ofnmodern culture: salvation earned, althoughnnot always understood, by thenpoorest of God’s poor.nM erton wrote prolrfically. His pen,nof course, was his only real outlet. Hisnconnection with the world was almostnwholly through books, letters, an occasionalnnewspaper. His views on politicaln18nChronicles of Culturenand social topics, far from being thenresult of personal experience, were reflectionsnthrough an assortment of prisms,nthe effects of which could cause distortions.nAnd distortions were perceived innmany cases. Merton railed against capitalism,nthe “white” culture. Pentagonnwarmongers, and the whole range of leftistntargets in the 60’s. He said some recklessnthings and supported some shabbynpolitical enterprises. Still, it’s possiblenand necessary to sort these out from thensurplus of impressions that has collectednaround the true picture of Thomas Merton.nAfter all, this is the priest whonwrote: “By the light of infiised wisdom,nwe enter deeply into the Mystery ofnChrist Who is Himself the light of men.nWe participate, as it were, in the glorynthat is radiated mystically by His risennand transformed Humanity.” All Merton’snworks—contemplative, literary,nand political—were bent toward feelingnthe light of Christ’s wisdom in his soul.nHe therefore fought heroically againstnthe death wish of contemporary massnculture, even occasionally lashing outnimpulsively. His errors and overstatementsnwere, not unexpectedly, highlightednand trumpeted by opportunistsnwhose goals were political, not spiritual.nPolitics was not Merton’s arena. Neithernwas literature. He did discover some profoundntruths about modern literaturenand modern culture. But, with all hisnbrilliance, his purpose was a higher one.nIn the forthcoming issue of Chronicles of Culture:nReligion, Psychology & thenModern Souln”Beneath the reolutions of our time there is a morenfundamental shift A inajcir dislocation n ociurring innreligion away from tnsttcutional thurihes and, morenimportantly, awaj from monotheism The modernndirection is toward a mun-icntcred anthropology whosenessential component is, as James Hillman terms tt, an’polytheism of const iousnesj ‘”n—from the Commentnby Thomas MolnarnAlso:nOpinions & Views—Commendables—In FocusnPerceptibles—Waste of MoneynTlie American Proscenium—Stage—Screen—ArtnMusic—Correspondence—Liberal CulturenSocial Register—Journalism—In My Solitudennn