ITMS 19th General Meeting
Guide to opening Sessions
Thursday, June 19
THURSDAY, JUNE 19
1:00
PM – 2:15 PM
This orientation session is designed for those attending
their first ITMS meeting. The session will include a brief introduction to
Thomas Merton, then consider the meeting theme and offer a preview of
meeting events and sessions. The orientation is an opportunity to meet other
first-timers.
A2. ITMS Chapters Workshop - Michael Brennan
Michael Brennan serves as ITMS Coordinator of Chapters and is director of the Chicago ITMS Chapter. He was site coordinator for the 2011 ITMS Conference, has presented at ITMS conferences and contributed to The Merton Seasonal.
If you are interested in
discovering what ITMS chapters are doing, locating a chapter near you, or
learning how you might go about founding a chapter, attend this session.
A3. International Perspectives on Thomas Merton
Sylvia Grevel, Dominiek Lootens, Sophia Park, Marcela Raggio
Sylvia Grevel
is a theologian, Benedictine Oblate
and an actively engaged international advisor to the ITMS. She is currently
working to establish a strong Merton network in Australia, with a chapter in
Perth.
Dominiek Lootens an
International Advisor to the ITMS, is author of
Open to the Full Dimension: Thomas Merton, Practical Theology, and Pastoral
Practice (2022). He is head of the Center for Dialogue at the
Riedberg Campus in Frankfurt, Germany.
Sophia Park is Associate Professor of Emerita at Holy Names University and a Global Educator/Learner. She published An Asian Woman’s Religious Journey with Thomas Merton.
Marcela Raggio is a professor of American Literature at Cuyo National University in Mendoza, Argentina. She organized two biannual Argentine Thomas Merton Conferences and edited a bilingual volume on Thomas Merton. She is also author of the volume Thomas Merton, el Monje Traductor.
A4. Merton Research and Researching Merton - Alda Balthrop-Lewis, David Golemboski, Mark C. Meade
Alda Bathrop-Lewis - “What is an archive and why do we go there?”
Alda Balthrop-Lewis is Associate Professor of Religion at Florida State University and the author of Thoreau’s Religion: Walden Woods, Social Justice, and the Politics of Asceticism (2021).
David Golemboski and Mark Meade Responding.
David Golemboski is Associate Professor of Government at Augustana University in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. He is a Past-President of the ITMS, co-editor of the Merton Annual, and a member of the Merton Legacy Trust.
Mark C. Meade is the assistant director of the Thomas Merton Center at Bellarmine University and a past president of the ITMS. He has explored existentialist themes in Merton’s writings and studied Merton’s connections with Victoria Ocampo, Albert Camus, and Flannery O’Connor.
a. Matthew Riddle – “I Feel Like A Human Being Again’: Thomas Merton and the Renewal of a Christian Countercultural Tradition.”
Matthew Riddle is a Doctoral Candidate at Villanova University. His dissertation is tentatively titled “Democratizing Contemplation: Thomas Merton, Thomas Keating and Centering Prayer in America.”
This paper explores Thomas Merton's reinterpretation of the Desert Fathers as a lay Christian counterculture, contrasting them with the gradual institutionalization of monasticism. He advocates for a renewal of this laicized contemplative life accessible to all, integrating spirituality into everyday life, and blurring the boundaries between sacred and secular worlds
b. Ethan Vander Leek – “The Sacred City of the World: Merton on Interiority and Place.”
Ethan Vander Leek is a PhD candidate in Religious Studies at Marquette University. His dissertation research focuses on the understanding of selfhood in the philosophy of William Desmond and the theology of Rowan Williams.
An emphasis on the “inner self” need not suggest opposition to the “outer self.” Instead, Mertonian “interiority” pervades all “exterior” inhabiting of the material world. Merton’s appreciation for non-Western cultures, rooted in his Christian spirituality, shows this. So understood, the “inner self” can contribute to a Mertonian theology of place.
c. Guadalupe Zorrilla – “Water, Wood, and Wonder: Contemplative Thought in Merton and Bongiovanni.”
María Guadalupe Zorrilla, a junior researcher at UNCuyo’s Faculty of Humanities and Languages, specializes in English Philology, Teaching, and Special Education.
The rivers in Bongiovanni’s stories are spiritual guides that offer lessons in humility, patience, and the interconnectedness of all life. His descriptions of the natural world invite readers to pause and reflect, much like Merton’s writings, encouraging a contemplative gaze that fosters inner stillness and a deeper awareness of our surroundings.
a. Ryan Bell - "Peace in a Pilgrim Church: Thomas Merton's Influence on Archbishop Raymond Hunthausen."
Ryan Bell is a recent graduate of the University of Denver, a Benedictine oblate at Benet Hill Monastery in Colorado, and a former Daggy Scholar.
This presentation will explore how Thomas Merton had a profound influence on Raymond Hunthausen, the high-profile, boundary-pushing Archbishop of Seattle from 1975 to 1991. While the two scions of the postconciliar Catholic Church never met, Merton’s writings steeled Hunthausen for his headline-grabbing protests against nuclear arms, racism, and sexism, often putting him into conflict with Church authorities.
b. Rosys – “Hicks, Homosexuality, and Holiness: Using the Ideas of True Self and Performativity to Expand Queer Holiness for an Appalachian Context.”
Rosys is currently a Master of Arts in Theology and Ministry student at Boston College School of Theology and Ministry with interests in queer theology and Appalachian Christianity.
This paper seeks to use Thomas Merton’s idea of the True Self in conversation with the concepts of gender performativity and queer holiness to develop an Appalachian queer holiness based on embracing the unique qualities found at those intersections, such as the values and practice of community and connection.
2:30 PM
"Keeping Merton
Human."
“Praying the Hours Amidst a Landscape of Cries: An
Aesthetics of Resistance.”