Thomas Merton and Abraham Joshua Heschel: Partners in Prayer, Peace and Interfaith Dialogue

Our Next Meeting: 2 p.m. Sunday, March 18, 2012

Immaculate Conception Rectory Assembly, 7211 W. Talcott, Chicago

Sr. Mary Christine Athans

 

Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel

Thomas Merton’s extant correspondence with Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel from December 1960 - December 1966 offers a brief window into kindred spirits who were deeply committed to prayer, to the efforts for peace, and to the interfaith dialogue.  As both mystics and social activists, Merton and Herschel were challenged to integrate spirituality and the quest for social justice. Reflecting on their lives and selected writings can deepen our own insights into what it means to accept that challenge in our own lives. 

 —   Mary Christine Athans, BVM, Ph.D.

 

Mary Christine Athans, B.V.M., Ph. D.

Mary Christine Athans, B.V.M., a Sister of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is professor emerita at the Saint Paul Seminary School of Divinity of the University of St. Thomas (Minnesota), and currently adjunct faculty at Loyola University Chicago and Catholic Theological Union. She holds a Ph.D. in historical theology from the Graduate Theological Union at Berkeley, an S.T.L. from the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley, an M.A. in theology from the University of San Francisco, an M.A. in history from the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., and a B.S. in Humanities from Loyola University Chicago.

From 1970-1976 she served as Executive Director of the North Phoenix Corporate Ministry (NPCM), a cluster of five Protestant churches, one Catholic church and two synagogues (one Conservative and one Reform), in Phoenix, Arizona. She coordinated the interfaith activities of twenty-five priests, ministers and rabbis and the laity of the seven congregations as they worked together in education, social justice, liturgy and communication. During those years she wrote her master’s thesis in theology: “Two Covenants or One?  The Relationship of Judaism to Christianity within the Ecumenical Movement Today”  under Avery Dulles, S.J.  She was invited to be the first Minister-in-Residence at the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley in Spring Quarter 1975 because the NPCM was considered a model for interfaith organizations in the West. Her “grass roots” experience proved invaluable for her academic research and teaching.

Sr. Mary Christine Athans

After completing her Ph.D from the Graduate Theological Union at Berkeley in 1982 she received a three year appointment at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.  In 1984 she accepted a tenure track position at the Saint Paul Seminary, now the School of Divinity of the University of St. Thomas (Minnesota), where she served for eighteen years teaching historical theology, church history and spirituality. In fall semester 1992 she taught at the Ecumenical Institute at Tantur in Jerusalem. She has lectured extensively and was one of four scholars on the A & E Biography television production “Mary of Nazareth” discussing the Jewishness of Mary. She has received a variety of honors and awards.  In 2002, she was appointed professor emerita, and returned to Chicago where she teaches at Loyola University and Catholic Theological Union.

She is the author of The Coughlin-Fahey Connection: Father Charles E. Coughlin, Father Denis Fahey, C.S.Sp. and Religious Anti-Semitism in the United States, 1938-1954 (New York: Peter Lang, 1991); “To Work for the Whole People”: John Ireland’s Seminary in St. Paul (New York: Paulist Press, 2002); and In Quest of  the Jewish Mary  forthcoming from Orbis Press. She has written chapters in books, most recently in Reclaiming Catholicism: Treasures Old and New, eds. Thomas Groome and Michael Daley (New York: Orbis, 2010), has edited two books as well as two journals, and has written numerous articles and reviews in scholarly journals including “Courtesy, Confrontation, Cooperation: Jewish Christian Relations in the U.S.,” U. S. Catholic Historian (Spring 2010); “The Jewishness of Mary,” New Theology Review (August 2009); and “Judaism and Catholic Prayer: A New Horizon for the Liturgy,” New Theology Review (November 2008).

Town Hall Meeting Apr. 17

What a great year this is shaping up to be! 

• We'll meet at 2 p.m. this Sunday (Palm Sunday), Apr. 17, for a "town hall" style meeting to discuss the upcoming 12th General Conference of the ITMS June 9-12 at Loyola University (Lake Shore Campus). Members who have attended past conferences will participate in a panel discussion, sharing their recollections of past conferences so you'll have a better idea of what an ITMS conference is like.
• Jim Forest, keynote speaker at the 2007 ITMS conference in Memphis, will be the featured speaker at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 5, at the Cenacle Retreat and Conference Center, 513 Fullerton Parkway, Chicago. Tickets will be available at Sunday's town hall meeting.  The Cenacle Sisters are hosting this event, and tickets are required, available for $10 by sending a check payable to CC-ITMS to Mike Brennan, 4537 N. Melvina Ave., Chicago, IL 60630, by April 28. Seating is limited to 100, and we have sold 50 tickets so far.  I have attached a brochure and press release with parking info on the back. Parking is very limited and most will have to park at the Children's Memorial Outpatient lot at 2515 North Clark Street for $6 with Cenacle validation, so consider carpooling!
• Jim is launching his new book, "All is Grace - A Biography of Dorothy Day," and he will speak on the friendship between Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton. Copies of some of Jim's other books will also be available, including "Living With Wisdom - A Biography of Thomas Merton." For more information about Jim's books visit: http://www.jimandnancyforest.com/books/. He will be available to sign books after the talk.
• Deadline to register for the ITMS conference at Loyola is May 15. Brochures will be available at Sunday's meeting, or reply to this email if you would like one mailed to you.
• Jonathan Montaldo, former ITMS president, writer and editor, promotes the legacy of Thomas Merton and his teaching on the monastic contemplative tradition. We are working out details of having Jonathan as retreatmaster later this year at the Cenacle. It appears the weekend of Dec. 9-11 will work best. This will give us an opportunity to have our annual Mass commemorating Merton's life at the Cenacle Chapel on Saturday, Dec. 10. The Cenacle will cosponsor this retreat, which will be open to CC-ITMS members as well as the general public. More information should be available by the time of Jim Forest's talk May 5.
• The schedule for next fall and spring is still being determined. Speaker suggestions are welcome!

With prayers for you and your families as we begin Holy Week, and for a very Happy Easter,

Mike

Jim Forest, Brother Paul Quenon at Chicago Cenacle

Thomas Merton OCSO

 Seventy years ago, a young man named Thomas Merton entered the Abbey of Gethsemani near Louisville, Kentucky.  Merton went on to become an acclaimed 20th century author whose brilliant writings have been revered worldwide. He inspired a generation of Catholics with a modern story of conversion in The Seven Storey Mountain, and called them to a deeper inner life with Seeds of Contemplation.  His vital capacity to inspire people to embrace the Gospel of Jesus Christ in all its radical depth continues to invigorate readers and motivate activists.

Two men who were very close to Thomas Merton will be visiting the Chicago area this spring for talks hosted by the Cenacle Sisters at the Chicago Cenacle, 513 Fullerton Parkway, Chicago, and cosponsored by the Chicago Chapter of the International Thomas Merton Society. This is a rare opportunity to hear personal stories about Merton, who remains much loved and appreciated, and whose writings continue to enlighten and energize people around the world.

Jim Forest

Jim Forest will discuss “Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton: A Special Friendship,” at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 5, at the Cenacle.  Jim became a close friend of Merton in the early 1960s, and his life work promoting peace and reconciliation was nurtured by his friendships with both Merton and Dorothy Day. In his own right, Jim is a model of Christian hope, compassion and social action.  A founder of the Catholic Peace Fellowship and former General Secretary of the International Fellowship of Reconciliation, he is the author of many books, including Living With Wisdom – A Life of Thomas Merton; Praying with Icons; The Ladder of the Beatitudes; and The Road to Emmaus: Pilgrimage as a Way of Life. Together with his wife Nancy, Jim is is co-Secretary of the Orthodox Peace Fellowship. He is also editor of the journal In Communion.  In 1989, he received the Peacemaker Award from Notre Dame University's Institute for International Peace Studies. He is currently launching his new book, All is Grace: a Biography of Dorothy Day, and will sign copies following the talk (books will be available to purchase).

Dorothy Day

Seating is limited. Tickets are $10 and may be ordered by sending a check payable to CC-ITMS to ITMS, P.O. Box 31931, Chicago, IL 60631. Registration deadline is April 28.  Discounted parking is available at Children’s Memorial Hospital parking garage for $6 with Cenacle validation. For more information, email merton2011@gmail.com or call 773-447-3989. Hosted by the Cenacle Sisters and cosponsored by the Chicago Chapter of the International Thomas Merton Society.

Brother Paul Quenon OCSO

Brother Paul Quenon, OCSO, a passionate poet, artist and photographer who melds the solitude of being a Trappist monk with universal spirituality, will share his wisdom and gentle wit from 4 to 6 p.m. Sunday, June 12, at the Cenacle. Brother Paul was a novice under Thomas Merton at Gethsemani Abbey, where he remains a member of the monastic community. He will speak on "What Really Matters: Reflections from a Contemplative Life," sharing remembrances of Thomas Merton, who was his spiritual director, and reflecting on his 50 years as a Trappist monk. He will also read poems from his three poetry collections, as well as poems of Thomas Merton that open a window on the contemplative life. Accomplished in his own right for being a talented writer who weaves emotion, vivid imagery and spirituality into his poetry and books, Quenon is a powerful presenter whose quiet presence and universal wisdom speaks to the soul. His book Monkswear includes simple yet profound images of monastic life portrayed through poetry and photography.  His work incorporates humor, reflective passages and personal accounts that inspire readers to step out of the modern world and into one of gentle beauty. It should be a great event and chance to be with Brother Paul in an informal setting.  There will be refreshments and the program is open to the public. A freewill offering will be taken.

Jim will be available after the talk to sign copies of his biographies of Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton.

The International Thomas Merton Society is holding its 12^th General Conference June 9-12 at Loyola University’s lakefront campus, and featuring Dr. Martin Marty, Esther de Waal, Bishop Robert F. Morneau and Dr. Douglas Burton-Christie, as well as some 35 speakers, workshops and presentations.  For more information or to register, visit www.merton.org/chicago or contact Site Coordinator Mike Brennan at 773-447-3989.

Our next three meetings of the CC-ITMS:

Sunday, Jan. 16: Sr. Suzanne Zuercher, OSB - "Doing Lectio Divina with Thomas Merton"

Sunday, Feb. 20: Marcia Whitney Schenck - A performance about St. Therese of the Little Flower as seen through the eyes of her sister, Sr. Agnes

Sunday, Mar. 20: Mark Quinn - "Thomas Merton, Sophia, and Spirit"

in the Immaculate Conception Church Rectory Assembly (the lower hall of the rectory next door to the church), 7211 W. Talcott (at Harlem) in Chicago.

Fall 2010 Speaker Series

We're calling this our "Franciscan Fall" because all the speakers belong to the Franciscan religious order. All meetings are held from 2-4 p.m. on the third Sundays of September, October and November in the Immaculate Conception Church Rectory Assembly (the lower hall of the rectory next door to the church), 7211 W. Talcott (at Harlem) in Chicago. The church is less than a half mile north of the Kennedy Express (I-90) Harlem exit in the Norwood Park neighborhood. Signs will be posted, and there is ample free parking. Presentations are followed by a question & answer period. Freewill donation (suggested amount, $6). Refreshments provided. For more information or to RSVP, contact Chapter Coordinator Mike Brennan at 773-447-3989.

Sr. Margaret Guider, OSF

SUNDAY, SEPT. 19, 2010
"The Beginning of Love": Thomas Merton's Influence on the Evolution of Women's Spiritual Consciousness, with Sr. Margaret Guider, OSF

In the late 1960’s, Merton, like many others, began to reflect on women’s roles. His reflections focused on the situation of women religious, and in conferences and retreats in Kentucky and California he talked about “the feminine mystique.” At Gethsemani in May 1968 he challenged the male and female stereotypes. Women are not “passive” and “mysterious.” Stereotypes of gender and race are “not true” (Springs of Contemplation, 162). “I think you have an absolute duty to rebel, for the good of the Church itself. Otherwise, you are creating and perpetuating this image of the mysterious, veiled, hidden woman who is an ‘enclosed-garden.’ The truth is not that there’s all this ‘femininity’ locked up in the convent. The truth is that there are people loving God” (163). In the beginning, religious life was “a real liberation” for women, “a chance to be a person,” but that no longer was the case (164). Merton was only beginning to work out the ideas expressed here. One wonders what he would say about women today.
– Christine M. Bochen, The Thomas Merton Encyclopedia (541).

Sr. Margaret is one who wonders. She once wrote a paper on “Merton’s Subterranean Feminism,” and in this talk offers an expansive view of Merton’s contribution to the development of women’s spiritual consciousness.

Merton’s prophetic and inspiring perspectives on the Church, social justice, war and peace, ecology, monasticism and interfaith dialogue are well known. Less well known and appreciated are his views on the vital role of women in the Church and in the world. It is a real privilege for the Chicago Chapter-ITMS to welcome Sr. Margaret to our first meeting of the fall. Please join us for this timely and insightful talk.

Sister Margaret Guider, OSF, is a member of the Sisters of St. Francis of Mary Immaculate and the congregation’s vice president and councilor for mission. She lectures widely and, in recent years, has been noted for her work on intercultural communication, racism and racial privilege, the Franciscan missionary charism, and consecrated life in the context of a world church. A gifted scholar and author, she is an Associate Professor of theology at Boston College School of Theology and Ministry, and author of Daughters of Rahab: Prostitution and the Church of Liberation in Brazil (Fortress, 1996) and editor of Doing What Is Ours to Do: A Clarian Theology of Life (Franciscan Institute, 2000). She is the past-president of the American Society of Missiology and has served as an advisor to missionary societies, religious congregations, and Catholic institutions. She gave one of the main talks for the U.S. Catholic Mission Association’s 2003 conference, “Mission and Transformation: Our Mission of Solidarity in a Globalized World.” Her teaching interests include World Christianity and Mission Studies, Contextual Theologies, Mariology, and Contemporary Issues in Religion, Culture & Society. Current research focuses on the Church in Brazil, the contemporary relevance of the Franciscan theological tradition for Christian life and practice, and Consecrated Life in the 21st Century. You can view a recent talk by Sr. Margaret given last April at Marquette University: http://www.marquette.edu/umi/grants.shtml

Daniel Horan OFM

SUNDAY, OCT. 17, 2010
 “Thomas Merton the ‘Dunce’: Identity, Incarnation and the Not So Subtle Influence of John Duns Scotus,” with Daniel P. Horan, OFM

The influence of key figures in the early life of Thomas Merton, such as the poet Gerard Manley Hopkins and Columbia University professor Daniel Walsh, has been observed and studied for many decades. However, there is a significant thread of theological and philosophical contiguous insight that has been largely overlooked, both in its direct influence and its more indirect or subtle influence through these two intellectual and spiritual guides. The missing link of continuity is the medieval Franciscan thinker John Duns Scotus. Renown for his theological and philosophical originality, his logical and nuanced approach to complicated metaphysical questions and his difficult-to-penetrate work, Scotus – known as the Subtle Doctor – was a thinker that captured the attention of the young Thomas Merton and remained present in the background of his thought and writings until his death. This lecture will present two major themes in the writing of Merton in light of their resemblance and likely indebtedness to the original work of John Duns Scotus; namely, the True Self and the Incarnation. In addition to being another infrequently considered dimension of Merton’s Franciscan impulse, the influence of Scotus in the 20th Century monk’s work can help us appreciate Merton’s innovative spirituality even more. Perhaps like Merton we too can be numbered among the dunces of history, that is, in its original meaning – a follower of the school of Scotus. – Daniel Horan, OFM
Dan Horan is a Franciscan friar of Holy Name Province (NY) and a member of both the International Thomas Merton Society and the Thomas Merton Society of Great Britain and Ireland. A former Daggy Scholar, he is a graduate of St. Bonaventure University (NY) and the Washington Theological Union (DC). His work has been published in journals such as America, The Merton Annual, The Merton Journal (UK), The Merton Seasonal, Heythrop Journal, Review for Religious, Spiritual Life, The Cord and others. He has delivered papers at the general meeting for the Thomas Merton Society of Great Britain and Ireland as well as the Eleventh Conference of the International Thomas Merton Society (2009). He has also delivered invited public lectures on Merton in Boston and Washington, DC. Dan will begin teaching in the Department of Religious Studies at Siena College (NY) in Fall 2010. It is a privilege for the Chicago Chapter-ITMS to offer this presentation by an outstanding young Merton scholar.

Fr. Albert Hasse, OFM

SUNDAY, NOV. 21, 2010
 “Overcoming the Seduction of the False Self,” with Fr. Albert Haase, OFM

A central theme that weaves its way through Thomas Merton’s writings is that sanctity consists in discovering our true identity. The essence of the spiritual quest is our search for our true, or real, self. In an early work (1949) he writes, “For me to be saint means to be myself. Therefore the problem of sanctity and salvation is in fact the problem of finding out who I am and of discovering my true self” (Seeds of Contemplation, 26). In the same chapter he identifies what is at the heart of the problem of discovering one’s true identity: “every one of us is shadowed by an illusory person: a false self” (28). Thus, very early in his writings, Merton introduces two terms (that will recur repeatedly in his later writings) that we must understand if we are to grasp what he has to say about the achievement of personal identity. The goal in the quest for self-identity is the “true self”; the villain who obstructs the way is “the false self….” He does not, it seems, intend primarily to see the false self as “false” in a moral sense, as if the false self were untruthful, sinful, immoral. No doubt it can, and perhaps often does, have that meaning. But such a meaning is derivative and does not catch the primary sense in which he uses the term “false self.” Merton is thinking more in ontological terms. This is to say that the adjective “false” conveys the notion of unsubstantiality, of lacking in any fullness of being. The false self is deficient in being – deficient in the sense that it is impermanent, not enduring….The false self is a self of changing emotions – now up, now down. It exists not at any deep level of reality, but only in our egocentric desires: the desire to manipulate, to be recognized, to be praised, to possess, to accumulate. “The tragedy of a life centered on ‘things,’ on the grasping and manipulation of objects, is that such a life closes the ego upon itself, as though it were an end in itself, and throws it into a hopeless struggle with other perverse and hostile selves competing together for the possession, which will given them power and satisfaction” (Birds of Appetite, 82). Such a false self has no voice of its own; it speaks the voice of the anonymous collectivity. In our time the media generally are the source from which it derives its judgments and opinions. It has objectified itself; that is, it has made itself into an object that can be talked about and described. This means that it has lost touch with its own subjectivity and therefore, quite literally, does not (and cannot ever) know itself….Life’s most pressing task is to unmask this false, illusory self and become “aware of the presence within us of a disturbing stranger, the self that is both ‘I’ and someone else. The self that is not entirely welcome in his own house because he is so different from the everyday character that we have constructed out of our dealings with others – and our infidelities to ourselves.” – William H. Shannon, The Thomas Merton Encyclopedia (417-418)




So how does one overcome this powerful seduction in a culture that often seems dedicated to promoting superficiality, celebrity, and an endless procession of titillating distractions? A culture in which every egocentric desire, especially the accumulation of possessions, is enshrined? Fr. Albert Haase has been pondering these questions for some time, and offers his timely perspectives. Ordained a Franciscan priest in 1983, Fr. Albert is a popular preacher, teacher, spiritual director and radio personality. A former missionary to mainland China for over eleven years, he is the author of five books on popular spirituality. Fr. Albert is the director of the International Institute for Clergy Formation based at Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ. He is also the co-host of Spirit and Life, a radio show heard every weekend on the Relevant Radio Network, Baraga Broadcasting and The Presence Radio Network. Copies of his latest book, THIS SACRED MOMENT: Becoming Holy Right Where You Are will be available for purchase (no checks, cash only please), and Fr. Albert has will be happy to sign copies during the break and following the question & answer period.


Visit his web site at www.AlbertOFM.org – and read Fr. Albert’s article on Spiritual Direction in the November, 2007, issue of St. Anthony Messenger Magazine at:


http://www.americancatholic.org/Messenger/Nov2007/Feature2.asp

Annual Chapter Picnic Next Sunday, Aug. 22

The CC-ITMS Annual Picnic will be held beginning at 1 p.m. next Sunday, Aug. 22, in the Passionist Monastery yard (behind the monastery, 5700 N. Harlem, Chicago). Park by the rectory assembly and follow signs posted. Please bring a dish to pass and a lawn chair. To help us plan for meats and refreshments (provided by the Chapter), please RSVP to Penny Jaworski at 847-375-9291. We also invite you to bring your favorite Merton passage to share. We will move indoors if it rains. An update on plans for the 2011 ITMS Conference at Loyola will be given. For more information, contact Mike at 773-447-3989.

Readers Begin "Contemplation in a World of Action" July 26

The Chicago Chapter—ITMS readers will begin discussing Thomas Merton’s Contemplation in a World of Action at its next meeting from 7-8 p.m. next Monday, July 26, in the library of the Immaculate Conception Passionist Monastery, 5700 N. Harlem, Chicago. Fr. Francis Cusack is the moderator of this discussion group. The format is to read the book in advance and discuss it, usually chapter by chapter, at the meeting. For more information, contact Fr. Francis at 773-631-1686, ext. 241.

"When I speak of the contemplative life I do not mean the institutional, cloistered life . . . I am talking about a special dimension of inner discipline and experience, a certain integrity and fullness of personal development. . . . Discovering the contemplative life is a new self-discovery. One might say it is the flowering of a deeper identity on an entirely different plane. . . ." —Thomas Merton, from the book

The spiritual and psychological insights of these essays were nurtured in a monastic milieu, but their issues are universally human. Merton lays a foundation for personal growth and transformation through fidelity to "our own truth and inner being." His main focus is our desire and need to attain "a fully human and personal identity."

“To me, [Contemplation in a World of Action] is [Merton’s] most eloquent book, for in it he speaks more directly of the contemplative life than he ever had before, and in so doing, distilled the wisdom gained from his own contemplative experience.” —Julius Lester, New York Times Book Review

“Many years ahead of his time—as all serious prophets are—Merton saw the necessary link between contemplation and social action.” — Values and Visions Reviews Service

Merton, Marxism & Threads of Ideology April 18

Marc Boswell, a Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary doctoral candidate, will speak on "Beating Down the Phantoms: Merton, Marxism and the Threads of Ideology," at 2 p.m. Sunday, Apr. 18, at Immaculate Conception School's Providence Hall, 7211 W. Talcott, Chicago. Signs will be posted by the entrance, which is across the parking lot from where our chapter usually meets.

Mr. Boswell will be examining Merton's social analysis and, particularly, his commentary on advanced industrial society's effects on human knowledge and the human spirit. He is interested in illustrating the structural similarities (and differences) between Merton's thought and the work produced by Marxist social theorists of the Frankfurt School of philosophy. This comparison will be done with a careful eye on Merton's analysis of the myths, falsehoods, and ideologies of late-industrial and globalized societies (both capitalist and communist), and we will see if these Marxist-informed critiques may be of continued relevance for Christians in the 21st century.

Marc Boswell grew up in Saratoga, NC, which is in eastern North Carolina. He is an ordained minister in the Free Will Baptist tradition, but he considers himself an "expansive Protestant," as he has served in United Methodist, Presbyterian, and Episcopalian congregations. He completed his M.Div. from Union Theological Seminary, Richmond, VA, and is finishing his first year of course work in Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary's Ph.D. program in Theology, Ethics, and History. He and his wife, Kate Fiedler Boswell, moved to Chicago in the fall of 2009, and they reside in Rogers Park. He has enjoyed being able to work with E. Glenn Hinson this semester, and they enjoyed a trip to Gethsemani in February.

Please join us for this talk and discussion. Refreshments will be served. Suggested donation is $5 for non-members. For more information, call Mike at 773-447-3989.

"Can the Warrior God of the Old Testament Be a God of Peace?" Sunday, Mar. 21

The Chicago Chapter-ITMS presents a talk by Pauline Viviano, Ph.D., "Can the Warrior God of the Old Testament Be a God of Peace?" at 2 p.m. Sunday, Mar. 21, 2010, at Immaculate Conception Rectory Assembly, 7211 W. Talcott (at Harlem), Chicago.

The image of God as Warrior is one of the earliest and most pervasive images of God in the Old Testament. In this lecture, Dr. Pauline Viviano will focus on understanding this image in its historical and theological contexts and suggest ways in which we as Christians can make peace with the Warrior God of the Old Testament. The issue of peace was enormously important to Thomas Merton and we think you will find Dr. Viviano's presentation insightful. She is a member of our chapter and it is an honor to feature her as a presenter.

Dr. Viviano is an Associate Professor of Theology at Loyola University Chicago. She received her doctorate in Biblical Languages and Literature from St. Louis University. Besides articles in academic and popular journals, her publications include reading guides for the Books of Joshua, Judges, 1-2 Samuel, 1-2 Kings and Ruth, for the Catholic Study Bible published by Oxford University Press (April 1990) and a commentary on the Book of Genesis in the Collegeville Bible Commentary series. She is presently working on a commentary on the Books of Jeremiah and Lamentations. In addition to University teaching she often lectures at parishes in and around Chicago. Her specialty is Hebrew Scriptures, and her research interests include: Old Testament: Deuteronomistic History, formation; Genesis; Jeremiah; Hebrew poetry; Hebrew narrative; literary critical method; Bible: Methodology, methods of interpretation and history of interpretation.


Dues-paying members free, visitors $5. No registration is necessary. For more information, contact Mike Brennan at 773-447-3989.

Note: Immaculate Conception Parish will be hosting a St. Joseph’s Day table at 12 noon March 21 in Providence Hall, in the school, directly across the parking lot from the rectory. Also, the parish offers Catholic Mass at 12 noon. We invite you to come early for Mass and/or the St. Joseph’s table.

By reading the scriptures I am so renewed that all nature seems renewed around me and with me. The sky seems to be a pure, a cooler blue, the trees a deeper green. The whole world is charged with the glory of God and I feel fire and music under my feet. — Thomas Merton

The Hidden Christ of Thomas Merton Discussed Sunday, Feb. 21

Vaughn Fayle, OFM will discuss "Sophia - The Hidden Christ of Thomas Merton," a new book by Xavier University (Ohio) Professor Christopher Pramuk, at 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 21, in the Rectory Assembly of Immaculate Conception Parish, 7211 W. Talcott, Chicago.

Below is a description of the book from amazon.com, and two reviews:

While numerous studies have celebrated Thomas Merton's witness as an interfaith pioneer, poet, and peacemaker, there have been few systematic treatments of his Christology as such, and no sustained exploration to date of his relationship to the Russian "Sophia" tradition. This book looks to Thomas Merton as a "classic" theologian of the Christian tradition from East to West, and offers an interpretation of his mature Christology, with special attention to his remarkable prose poem of 1962, Hagia Sophia. Bringing Merton's mystical-prophetic vision fully into dialogue with contemporary Christology, Russian sophiology, and Zen, as well as figures such as John Henry Newman and Abraham Joshua Heschel, the author carefully but boldly builds the case that Sophia, the same theological eros that animated Merton's religious imagination in a period of tremendous fragmentation and violence, might infuse new vitality into our own. A study of uncommon depth and scope, inspired throughout by Merton's extraordinary catholicity.

Reviews
"Pramuk's work is, far and away, the most sophisticated theological study ever done on the writings of Thomas Merton. It sets a very high bar for anyone else who intends to comment on the writings of the monk whose writings, nearly a half century after his death, still exert such a powerful influence on contemporary religious seekers." --Lawrence S. Cunningham, John A. O'Brien Professor of Theology, The University of Notre Dame

Christopher Pramuk's Sophia: the Hidden Christ of Thomas Merton is, dare it be said, a gorgeous book. Its beautifully crafted pages are full of insight about Merton and his "sapiential" theological method, the poetical and mystical manner in which he lived into the rich symbolic matrix of faith and drew from it living wisdom, made luminous by his engagement with non-western religions, Eastern Orthodox thought and the kataphatic and apophatic modes of knowing of his own tradition. Moreover, Sophia invites the reader into a compelling meditation on the doing of theology in the contemporary world. It affirms the need for a bold theological imagination and a faith intensely aware of Sophia, the divine presence alive in the world. --Wendy M. Wright, Professor of Theology, John C. Kenefick Faculty Chair in the Humanities, Creighton University

About the speaker:
Franciscan Fr. Vaughn Fayle was born in South Africa in 1960 into a musical and literary family: his father was a pipe organ builder, his aunt a concert pianist and his uncle on his mother’s side, Denis Brutus, an international poet and activist who was imprisoned with Nelson Mandela, who died Dec. 26, 2009.

Vaughn began music studies at the age of five, studying piano and later on pipe organ and harpsichord. After high school he studied music at Rhodes University with John Birch, Rupert Mayr, Christine Lucia and private studies in orchestration and composition and completed his LRMS degree from the Royal School of Music, London. Poor eye sight due to juvenile glaucoma forced him to turn from music performance to composition, musicology and philosophy. He completed graduate studies in philosophy and theology in Europe and came to the USA in 1990 to direct a department of undergraduate philosophy of religion in Texas. He taught both religion and philosophy at Our Lady of the Lake University.

In 1997 he studied the use of music and the lives of composers in the concentration camps in Europe and composed a set of Three Hebrew Chanukah Songs for orchestral harp and choir, which was premiered by the San Antonio Choral Society under the direction of Dr. Gary Mabry at the University of Texas at San Antonio. He has since composed works for choir and for various small instrumental ensembles including incidental music for Provision Theater Company’s 2004 production of A Christmas Carol, Actor’s Workshop Theater’s 2006 production of Proof.

At the suggestion of his uncle, exiled South African poet Dennis Brutus he began setting Brutus’ Robben Island poetry to music and then began studying the poetry of the American poet and spiritual writer, Thomas Merton. In July 2007, the International Thomas Merton Society awarded him the 2007-2008 Shannon Fellowship for his setting of the poetry of Thomas Merton.

Since 1999, Vaughn has served as director of philosophy studies and adjunct professor of the philosophy of religion at Catholic Theological Union in Hyde Park, where he has taught courses on Thomas Merton’s political philosophy. He is a member of the American Composers Forum, the American Guild of Organists and the American Philosophical Association.

Vaughn has been a frequent presenter for the Chicago Chapter of the International Thomas Merton Society, and participated in the 2009 ITMS conference in Rochester, NY. He serves on the ITMS 2011 program committee.

Chicago Chapter - ITMS 2010 Meetings

Sunday Speaker Meetings are held in the Immaculate Conception Parish Rectory Assembly, 7211 W. Talcott, Chicago, from 2 to 4 p.m.

Monday Reading Group Meetings are held in the Passionist Monastery Library, 5700 N. Harlem, Chicago, from 7 to 8 p.m.

Sunday, Jan. 17: Suzanne Zuercher, OSB: "Living and Loving: Merton's Last Task, Revisited"
Monday, Jan. 25: Reading Group: Seven Storey Mountain, part 3, section 1 & 2.
Sunday, Feb. 21: Vaughn Fayle, OFM: "Sophia - The Hidden Christ of Thomas Merton," a discussion of Christopher Pramuk's new book.
Monday, Feb. 22: Reading Group: Seven Storey Mountain, contined.
Sunday, Mar. 21: Dr. Pauline Viviano, "Can the Warrior God of the Old Testament Be a God of Peace?"
Monday, Mar. 29: Reading Group
Sunday, Apr. 18: Mark Boswell, Ph.D. candidate, Garrett Theological Seminary, Talk title TBA

Monday, Apr. 26: Reading Group
Sunday, May 16: TBA
Monday, May 24: Reading Group

There are no speaker meetings in June, July or August
Picnic TBA

Monday, June 28: Reading Group
Monday, July 26: Reading Group
Monday, Aug. 30: Reading Group
Sunday, Sept. 19: Meg Guider, OSF, Talk title TBA
Monday, Sept. 27: Reading Group
Sunday, Oct. 17: Daniel Horan, OFM: Talk title TBA
Monday, Oct. 25: Reading Group
Sunday, Nov. 21: Fr. Albert Haas, OFM: Talk title TBA
Monday, Nov. 29: Reading Group
Wednesday, Dec. 8: Annual Merton Memorial Mass - Passionist Monastery

For more information, contact Chapter Coordinator Mike Brennan: 773-447-3989

Merton Mass This Thursday, Dec. 10

Thursday, Dec. 10: The annual Chapter Mass commemorating Merton's death on this day in 1968 will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 10, in the chapel of the Passionist Monastery, 5700 N. Harlem, Chicago. Fr. Francis Cusack, CP, and Fr. Vaughn Fayle, OFM, will concelebrate. Mass will be followed by a social. For more information, contact Mike Brennan at 773-447-3989.

Sunday, Dec. 20: The Chicago Chapter-ITMS is among the sponsors of a performance of The Hermit in New York at 7 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 20, at the School of the Art Institute Ballroom, 112 S. Michigan, Chicago. For reservations & full info please call 773.868.1700 x 2. The suggested donation is $20 suggested donation. Written by Teresa Weed and featuring Beau O'Reilly as Thomas Merton, A HERMIT IN NEW YORK begins on a weekend in New York when Merton met with Zen scholar DT Suzuki. It then weaves together the poetry and prose of Merton's public and privates lives, spiritual development and his advocacy for peace and justice. We urge you to print the attached flyers and share it with your family, friends and parish community. For more information, contact the Still Point Theatre Collective at 773-868-1700.