Distractions, illusion and the need for a contemplative spirituality: A critique of Thomas Merton’s advice

Abstract

ABSTRACTWhat I attempt to show in this article is that living in a consumerist culture often blurs the boundaries between truth and falsehood with the consequence that the world can appear opaque, insubstantial and not to be trusted. Many are duped into thinking they inhabit a ‘real’ world, which through contemplation, they learn is nothing more than a figment of their distracted selves. Drawing primarily upon the writings of Thomas Merton and Blaise Pascal’s notion of divertissement, I suggest that this tendency leads to a kind of death in spiritual terms – the annihilation of truth through the obliteration of the belief in a created order which offers a source and wellspring for renewal and optimism. Merton reminds us of this, offering a way out of the maze. That is why I argue he has something to offer at the present time.