It is in deep solitude that I find the gentleness with which I can truly love my brothers. The more solitary I am, the more affection I have for them. It is pure affection, and filled with reverance for the solitude of others. Solitude and silence teach me to love my brothers for what they are, not for what they say.
Interpretation
Solitude allows for a deeper understanding and love for others, free from distractions and judgments.
In this quote, Thomas Merton expresses the idea that being alone in contemplation fosters a genuine love for others. He suggests that true affection emerges when we step away from the noise and expectations of society, emphasizing that solitude and silence enable us to appreciate individuals for their true selves rather than their outward expressions.
In practice
During a meditation retreat, one could share this quote to highlight the importance of inner reflection.
The devil is no fool. He can get people feeling about heaven the way they ought to feel about hell. He can make them fear the means of grace the way they do not fear sin. And he does so, not by light but by obscurity, not by realities but by shadows; not by clarity and substance, but by dreams and the creatures of psychosis. And men are so poor in intellect that a few cold chills down their spine will be enough to keep them from ever finding out the truth about anything.
Our vocation is not simply to be, but to work together with God in the creation of our own life, our own identity, our own destiny....To work out our identity in God.
Conscience is the light by which we interpret the will of God in our own lives.
You are made in the image of what you desire.
But if you want to identify me, ask me not where I live, or what I like to eat, or how I comb my hair, but ask me what I think I am living for.
I have the immense joy of being man, a member of a race in which God Himself became incarnate. As if the sorrows and stupidities of the human condition could overwhelm me, now that I realize what we all are. And if only everybody could realize this! But it cannot be explained. There is no way of telling people that they are all walking around shining like the sun.
If you can show me how I can cling to that which is real to me, while teaching me a way into the larger society, then and only then will I drop my defenses and hostility, and I will sing your praises and help you to make the desert bear fruit.
We are hardwired to connect with others, it's what gives purpose and meaning to our lives, and without it there is suffering.
Keep your eyes wide open before marriage, half shut afterwards.
She said, why don't we both just sleep on it tonight,_x000D_ And I believe, in the morning you'll begin to see the light._x000D_ And then she kissed me and I realized she probably was right,_x000D_ There must be fifty ways to leave your lover, fifty ways to leave your lover.
I don't see women and think of them as competition or with judgment. Women really move me. I feel connected to all kinds of women. I am angry because I think we've been mistreated throughout history in different countries, including America. I admire women.
You can kiss your family and friends good-bye and put miles between you, but at the same time you carry them with you in your heart, your mind, your stomach, because you do not just live in a world but a world lives in you.
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