Anne Zagursky-Thomas Merton's Ascent to Truth

Finding Truth Through Contemplation

Thomas Merton’s book The Ascent to Truth gives readers a view of what it means to be ascetic and how one goes about becoming contemplative. Merton shares what one of the great pioneer Christian contemplators, St. John of the Cross, thought and how he became so involved in the ascetic life. Merton also covers the various false contemplators and explains ways that people might go about the idea incorrectly. The book provides a great bit of detail on the skills and practice needed to become contemplative while exposing how the techniques are misused or misunderstood. Merton says that to main goal of contemplation is to clear the mind of all else outside of God in order to find the truth. He says that God is able to share with the ascetics the deep truths that others may not be able to understand. Contemplation is not for everyone, but most people do seem to yearn for a deeper understanding of God and closeness with Him.

Throughout the book Merton discusses various religious groups and people that try to use contemplation but do so in an incorrect or unsuccessful manner. Groups like Manichaeism, Gnosticism, some of the Oriental religions and different types of Christians have tried to use contemplation in order to achieve something other than oneness with God and Divine revelation. They have perverted the ideas and used them for selfish reasons. Some are dualistic, some pair the gods with worldly desires and some want to do away with knowledge and understanding. All of these ideas draw the person away from the Divine and cause problems with true understanding. In order to truly become contemplative, one must surrender worldly desires and thoughts, but they ought to have a vast and deep knowledge of God or the Divine. To know nothing of the one they are trying to reach seems ridiculous and dangerous. The danger is that other thoughts or spirits can plague the mind of the uneducated causing the person to believe anything and everything that the mind brings forth. It may and often is not from God because they know little or nothing of him and would not be able to discern whether it were true or not. Contemplation is a skill that is used to join in unity with God in order to understand more about ones’ self. If one does not know God then he only knows the self and contemplation would be rendered useless.
I agree with what Merton has to say most of the time. Contemplation is not something for the Sunday-only Christian. It is intense and often life-altering, but can bring the most amazing results. The only thing I would have to say is that I believe there are other ways to become one with the Divine or God. As a Catholic I believe that through the Eucharist I am for a few moments divine. I have the literal body and blood of Christ in my hands and in my mouth. When I eat that flesh and blood, Jesus and I become one. I know Merton was also Catholic so he may have believed this also, but he seemed to lean toward a more unmediated experience of the Holy. Overall, the book was amazing and will help me as I draw closer to Christ in my own relationship. Merton and John of the Cross were amazing men of the Catholic faith and leaders in the thoughts on asceticism and contemplation.