News & Events

Wednesday, February 11, 2009
by: Christine Yzaguirre

On Thursday, February 26, join the University for "Uncaging Our Minds and Opening the Ears of Our Hearts: Thomas Merton's Legacy for Contemplative Living." Part of the Distinguished Guest Lecture Series, the event will take place at 4 p.m. in Jubilee Hall Auditorium and will feature Distinguished Guest Lecturer Jonathan Montaldo, Associate Director of the Thomas Merton Center for Contemplative Living in Louisville, Kentucky. 
 
Montaldo will deliver a critical retrospective on major elements of Thomas Merton's legacy for readers in the 21st century. He will examine Merton's personal and compassionate transparency to his life's cohorts in his autobiographical writing, and his monastic life's tendency toward developing a universal inclusiveness -- Catholicity -- with all other beings.
 
In addition to his role in the Thomas Merton Center for Contemplative Living, Montaldo is resident director of Bethany Spring, the Merton Institute Retreat Center one mile from the Abbey of Gethsemani.  He is a former director of the Thomas Merton Center at Bellarmine University and a past president of the International Thomas Merton Society.
 
Montaldo has also demonstrated his extensive knowledge and expertise through his publications. He edited Entering the Silence, Volume 2 and The Intimate Merton with Brother Patrick Hart. Additionally, he published Dialogues with Silence, Merton & Hesychasm, A Year with Thomas Merton, Lent & Easter Wisdom from Thomas Merton, Thomas Merton: In My Own Words and Choosing To Love the World: Thomas Merton on Contemplation. He has co-edited a nine volume series for small group dialogue entitled Bridges to Contemplative Living with Thomas Merton and has most recently co-edited Soul Searching: the Journey of Thomas Merton with documentary film maker Morgan Atkinson. His Merton documentary of the same name debuted nationally on PBS in December 2008 to mark the 40th anniversary of Merton’s death on December 10, 1968. Finally, Montaldo has produced three audio books: The Intimate Merton, Contemplative Prayer and No Man Is an Island.
 
"Uncaging Our Minds and Opening the Ears of Our Hearts: Thomas Merton's Legacy for Contemplative Living" is co-sponsored by the Center for Catholic Studies and the Department of Sociology and Anthropology. Partial funding for this event has also been provided by the College of Arts and Sciences, thanks to the generous support of the President's Advisory Council members.

For more information please contact:
Danute Nourse
(973) 275-2525
catholicstudies@shu.edu