“A purely mental life may be destructive if it leads us to substitute thought for life and ideas for actions. The activity proper to man is not purely mental because man is not just a disembodied mind. Our destiny is to live out what we think, because unless we live what we know, we do not even know it. It is only by making our knowledge part of ourselves, through action, that we enter into the reality that is signified by concepts…
Living is not thinking. Thought is formed and guided by objective reality outside us. Living is the constant adjustment of thought to life and life to thought in such a way that we are always growing, always experiencing new things in the old and old things in the new. Thus life is always new.”
I think this touches on the source of much of my frustration from the past few years. I feel that most of my life, faith (my faith, the faith of the circles I've run in) has been so focused on what some have called "beliefism." I'm continuing to find that it's hard to shift out of that mode and into a more lively, active faith where beliefs are formed by action and action by belief.This relates in some ways to my current profession... the world of exercise/strength and conditioning/athletic performance is full of ideas and theories, some good, some bad, some neither. The reality of it, though, is that you have to be about the actual execution of plans and ideas to see if they actually work... a cycle of shaping action by thought and thought by action naturally occurs if you really care what results from your time and effort. Seems this attitude would better serve our faith and lead to a healthier perspective.
Thanks for the post..
ReplyDeleteA monk's life embodies the call to leave all and follow...
ReplyDeleteI had a good friend who entered the Dominican Order and stayed for three years. He left when his simple vows expired and he was set to take his solemn vows.
I also have another friend, a priest in Montgomery, that is going to answer the call to enter a monestary, where he will spend the rest of his life ministering to college kids in Kansas. (see http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/article/20090502/NEWS01/905020327)
In many ways, I envy the life totally dedicated to prayer and faith formation.
Thanks, Ken and X. What I like about Merton is that he acknowledges his somewhat unique perspective as a monk. In Thoughts in Solitude, he takes the position that Solitude is (should be?) the basis of any person's formation. While we are all social creatures and are called, in various forms, to live in community and share life with others, times of solitude, he claims, are essential to healthy community/society. I would include Silence with Solitude as I think they go hand in hand (and I think Merton does, too). Thanks for the link... I'll check that out!
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