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This file contains two satirical letters by Merton to the Editor of the Catholic magazine Jubilee. His friend Robert Lax was editor from the 1950's through 1963. Another Columbia University friend, Edward Rice, took over through the rest of the 1960's. One of these letters was sent, the other was not. Both letters have to do with both world politics and Church politics. Issues include the Vietnam War, the Soviet Union, communism, nuclear war, President Lyndon B. Johnson, Christian views on war, renewal of the priesthood and religious life after the Second Vatican Council, and the authority of the Catholic Church.
Please click here for general restrictions concerning Merton's correspondence.
Sent to Jubilee but not published. It appears as an appendix in The Root of War is Fear: Thomas Merton's Advice to Peacemakers by Jim Forest.
If the person in correspondence with Merton has full text records in the Merton Center Digital Collections, there will be a numeric link to them below.
This Record Sub-Group is not divided into Series and is arranged chronologically.
Click icons for links: ✓="Published | Library Record", ✉="Scanned" | 🗷="Scanned, Viewable Only at Merton Center"
| # | Date | From/To | First Lines | Pub ✓ | Notes |
| | y/m/d | Merton | | Scan ✉ | |
| 1. |
1966/10/no? |
TAL[d] from Merton |
Permit me to compliment you on the valuable survey on the priesthood in your October issue. |
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[marked "Not sent!" in Merton's handwriting - about an October 1966? issue of Jubilee concerning the renewal of the priesthood - concerning obedience, Church authority and such world events as the Vietnam War]
«detailed view» |
| 2. |
undated/no/no |
TL[c] from Merton |
In the recent article on the Rhodes Congress I was struck by the fact that the Russian Orthodox |
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[Merton types "Marco J. Frisbee" as the by-line of the letter - concerns the Jubilee article on the Rhodes Congress and the Russian Orthodox delegates' work for peace / threat of nuclear war / satirical letter arguing that nuclear war against the Soviet Union is the "Christian" thing to do - "Better dead than red."]
«detailed view» |
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