More Monk

"What can I say about the emptiness and freedom into whose door I entered for that half-minute, which was enough for a lifetime, because it was a new life altogether? There is nothing with which to compare it. I could call it nothingness, but it is an infinitely fruitful freedom, to lack all things and to lack my self in the fresh air of that happiness that seems to be above all modes of being. Don't let me build any more walls around it, or I will shut myself out."

Another prayer from one of Thomas Merton's journals. There is so much in this one that I could spend months digesting. But a few things spoke to where I am and what I'm thinking about. I'll address one here and come back to another in my next post.

"I could call it nothingness, but it is an infinitely fruitful freedom..." This guy gets meditation from a Christian perspective like no one else I've ever found. Recently a friend of mine was wrestling with the "did God create other religions?" question. Her thoughts and the thoughts of others posted on her blog www.kallagreen.blogspot.com reminded me of my college-aged interest in Taoism, Zen and all things Eastern. It infuriates me when Christians dismiss the possibility of learning anything from people with a different worldview - like there's something heretical about learning, asking questions, and seeking to understand other's views. My home church taught on Christian meditation once, and it was one of the few moments I have been embarassed by the teaching coming from the stage. It was ridiculous, ignorant, and arrogant. The person speaking obviously had no first-hand knowledge of the subject and lumped everything together in a cheesy video that made fun of people who do Yoga. Ridiculous! but I digress... One of the goals of most Eastern meditation is "nothingness." Nirvana. The complete absence of attachment, want, need, etc... But Merton finds something else in it. He finds "infinitely fruitful freedom." He finds Jesus.

This may sound simplistic, but it's true. At the end of all our searching and engaging in everything religion has to offer, if we're honest we won't know what to do with Jesus. He is so bizarre. His offer is so beyond our comprehension. It's foolishness. But if we're honest with Him, He's the only place we really find infinitely fruitful freedom.