This is a file in the correspondence of Thomas Merton under the heading: "Pennington, M. Basil, Dom, O.C.S.O.".
Dom M. Basil (Robert) Pennington was a Trappist monk, author, editor, lecturer and abbot. He joined St. Joseph's Abbey in Spencer, Massachusetts in 1951. In the early 1960's, he studied canon law at Gregorian University in Rome and returned to teach at Spencer. He began correspondence with Merton upon appointment in 1967 to reform the Trappist order's constitution. He was instrumental in launching Cistercian Publications (later Cistercian Studies) in the late 1960's. In the 1970's, he visited the Orthodox monks at Mt. Athos and began writing about Catholic-Orthodox dialogue. During this time, he also became interested in Centering Prayer and became one of its proponents, conducting numerous workshops on the subject. He spent eight years at Our Lady of Joy on Lantao Island near Hong Kong beginning in 1991. He traveled much through Asia and furthered interfaith dialogue with eastern religions. In 1999, he came back to the United States, briefly serving as superior of monasteries in Ava, Missouri, and Conyers, Georgia, before returning to Spencer. In March of 2005, he was in an accident from which he never fully recovered. In June of 2005, he succumbed to complications from the accident. He left behind a large corpus of writings. He wrote some reflections on Merton, including a book about a retreat he made at Merton's hermitage. (Source: "Dom M. Basil (Robert) Pennington, OCSO". Contemplative Outreach, Ltd. website. 2 Feb. 2006. ‹http://www.centeringprayer.com/newsltrs/basil.htm›.)
Please click here for general restrictions concerning Merton's correspondence.
See published letters from Merton to Pennington in The School of Charity, pp. 339, 381-383, 393-395.
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. |
1967/07/20 (#01) |
TLS to Merton |
Enclosed is a report on the first meeting of the Constitutional Renewal Commission. I believe you |
|
«detailed view» |
2. |
1967/07/20 (#02) |
other to Merton |
REPORT ON THE MEETING OF MONASTIC CANONISTS SPONSORED BY THE CONSILIUM |
|
[enclosed with 1967/07/20 letter (report from 1965/04/22) - includes handwritten note to Merton]
«detailed view» |
3. |
1967/07/25 |
TL[c] from Merton |
Thanks for your letter and for the interesting enclosures. I am awed by the work you people are |
✓ |
«detailed view» |
4. |
1967/11/22 |
TALS to Merton |
A good sister up in Canada has translated your paper into French. Would you like to check it over |
|
«detailed view» |
5. |
1967/12/16 (#01) |
TL[c] from Merton |
As you see, I am way behind with correspondence. Thanks for your letter, for the translation of my |
|
«detailed view» |
6. |
1967/12/16 (#02) |
TLS[x] from Merton |
As you see, I am way behind with correspondence. Thanks for your letter, for the translation of my |
|
«detailed view» |
7. |
1967/12/20 |
TANS to Merton |
Thanks for your letter of the 16th and the circular which was appreciated. A day or two before |
|
«detailed view» |
8. |
1967/12/23 |
HNS[x] from Merton |
Perfectly ok to go ahead with French text without corrections. Dom James was operated on for |
|
«detailed view» |
9. |
1968/05/15 |
TALS to Merton |
I hope you are bubbling over with paschal joy! As you might have heard (but then again might not) |
|
«detailed view» |
10. |
1968/05/23 (#01) |
TL[c] from Merton |
Thanks for the letter about the publication of the Cist. Fathers in English. I would much prefer |
✓ |
«detailed view» |
11. |
1968/05/23 (#02) |
TLS[x] from Merton |
Thanks for the letter about the publication of the Cist. Fathers in English. I would much prefer |
✓ |
«detailed view» |
12. |
1968/06/05 |
TLS to Merton |
Thanks for your letter of the 23rd. I received it only after the meeting was over and most |
|
«detailed view» |
13. |
1968/06/07 (#01) |
TL[c] from Merton |
Fr Eudes came back from the Abbots' Meeting with a formal invitation for me to be editor in chief |
|
«detailed view» |
14. |
1968/06/07 (#02) |
TLS[x] from Merton |
Fr Eudes came back from the Abbots' Meeting with a formal invitation for me to be editor in chief |
|
«detailed view» |
15. |
1968/06/11 (#01) |
TL[c] from Merton |
Not to leave you letter lying around indefinitely: it evidently crossed with mine. I'll try to |
✓ |
«detailed view» |
16. |
1968/06/11 (#02) |
TLS[x] from Merton |
Not to leave you letter lying around indefinitely: it evidently crossed with mine. I'll try to |
✓ |
«detailed view» |
17. |
1968/06/13? |
TLS to Merton |
I just got a note from Fr Louis Lekai accepting an invitation to the symposium and proposing |
|
«detailed view» |
18. |
1968/06/15 (#01) |
TL[c] from Merton |
As regards the symposium: I don't see why Louis Lekai wants to talk on eremitism if it is |
|
«detailed view» |
19. |
1968/06/15 (#02) |
TLS[x] from Merton |
As regards the symposium: I don't see why Louis Lekai wants to talk on eremitism if it is |
|
«detailed view» |
20. |
1968/08/14 |
TLS[x] from Merton |
Thanks for your recent letter. And the enclosures, questions etc which I can't pretend to answer |
✓ |
«detailed view» |
21. |
1968/09/02 (#01) |
TL[c] from Merton |
I'll try to see Bob Imperato--depends on how things connect when I get down there to the monastery. |
✓ |
«detailed view» |
22. |
1968/09/02 (#02) |
TLS[x] from Merton |
I'll try to see Bob Imperato--depends on how things connect when I get down there to the monastery. |
✓ |
«detailed view» |
23. |
1968/12/06 |
HPCS[x] from Merton |
It has been the custom for the abbot to sign all my contracts so I am returning the one for |
|
[postcard from Merton sent from Singapore, received by Pennington the day after Merton's death]
«detailed view» |
24. |
1970/11/09 (#01) |
TLS to Center from Pennington, Basil |
Thank you very much for your letter concerning the developments of the Thomas Merton Studies Center. |
|
«detailed view» |
25. |
1970/11/09 (#02) |
other to Center from Pennington, Basil |
...announcing new translations of Medieval Sources [-] The Works of the Cistercian Fathers |
|
«detailed view» |
26. |
1970/11/09 (#03) |
other to Center from Pennington, Basil |
Rev. M. Basil Pennington O.C.S.O., chairman of the Board of Directors of Cistercian Publications, |
|
«detailed view» |
27. |
1973/05/11 |
TLS[x] to Center from Pennington, Basil |
In cleaning out my file this week I ran into some letters from Tom Merton. I don't think I ever |
|
«detailed view» |
28. |
1973/05/30 |
TL[x] from Center to Pennington, Basil |
Thank you ever so much for the copies of Merton's letters to you. Tommie O'Callaghan, one |
|
«detailed view» |
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