The next meeting of the Grand Rapids chapter of the International Thomas Merton Society will be Wednesday, May 10th, at 7pm at Baker Book House. We will discuss chapters 4, 5, and 6 (and maybe 7) of Thomas Merton’s book Contemplative Prayer. Here are some suggested questions for discussion: CHAPTER IV 1. What does Merton … [Read more…]
We meet on the second Wednesday of every month, always at Baker Book House in Grand Rapids, Michigan. There is one month, however, in which we cannot meet on the second Wednesday: June. Because Beth and I will be out of state on that Tuesday and Wednesday, we will meet in June on the first … [Read more…]
Our last meeting (March 8th) was delightful. THANK YOU! I don’t recall a time when nobody wanted to leave afterwards and everyone stuck around for a half hour continuing to talk. We welcomed four new people (William, Rose, Jack, and Peach) to the group, learned much from them, including how they found themselves in that … [Read more…]
Last night’s meeting of the Grand Rapids chapter of the International Thomas Merton Society was amazing! Four new attendees. A robust discussion. People even stayed afterwards for a half hour talking to one another. No one wanted to leave. Group member (Bob Hudson) has a book about Thomas Merton coming out early next year published … [Read more…]
Our February meeting (on Wednesday the 8th) was another robust one. After watching the last 20-30 minutes of a movie about Merton’s life, we turned to the last chapter (“The General Dance”) from Merton’s book New Seeds of Contemplation – and that quickly became the springboard to discuss… …the need to focus on the moment… … [Read more…]
The next meeting of the International Thomas Merton Society, Grand Rapids Chapter, will be Wednesday, February 8th at 7pm in the Community Room at Baker Book House, which is near the corner of East Paris and 28th Street in Grand Rapids, Michigan. On that night, we will begin to study Thomas Merton’s book Contemplative Prayer, … [Read more…]
Michigan is a swell state in which to live – unless you don’t like driving in the snow and ice. Then it’s not so swell. We had both today (snow and ice). In abundance. (But what do you expect from the state ranked #2 for having the worst winters in America? Doubt me: click here.) … [Read more…]
In the next meeting of the Thomas Merton Society of Grand Rapids we will discuss prayer – as Thomas Merton understood it, and as he wrote about it in his important and influential book New Seeds of Contemplation. If you don’t yet have a copy of New Seeds of Contemplation, you can buy one at … [Read more…]
We had another outstanding meeting last Wednesday night (October 12th), with four new people joining us. Welcome Jim, Angel, Tim, and Christian! It was a fun time. We talked about the DVD The Many Storeys and Last Days of Thomas Merton, and continued our discussion of New Seeds of Contemplation – a discussion that’s far … [Read more…]
Our group has had such a wonderful time digging into Fr. Louis’ seminal book New Seeds of Contemplation that we will spend another meeting discussing it. We will gather together again on Wednesday, October 12, at 7pm, at Baker Book House near the corner of 28th Street and East Paris in Grand Rapids, Michigan. You … [Read more…]