Thomas Merton
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Authenticity, Scapegoating, and Peace
To practically everybody, peace simply means the absence of any physical violence that might cast a shadow over lives devoted to the satisfaction of their mimetic desires for comfort and pleasure. Continue reading
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The Burning Breath
But deep within the breath is burning; my breathing is burning. And that which I watch in meditation, part voluntary and part involuntary, burns in the smoky air. And alone in universal greed and desire, I breathe. Continue reading
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Solitude, Separation, and Holiness
“To live in communion, in genuine dialogue with others is essential if one is to remain human. But to live amidst others, sharing nothing with them but the common noise and the general distraction, isolates a person in the worst way.” Continue reading
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Dimensions
They said what the four of us knew in our bones: together, every obstacle could be resolved. Continue reading
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New Life In Christ: An Easter Message
Respectable Christians is not content with faith in the Risen Christ, not content with the grace and love of Christ: he wants the comfort and justification of being on the side of power and convention. Continue reading
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Authenticity and Humility in the Noise of Greatness
It does not take courage to be authentically yourself; it takes humility. Continue reading
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Thankful for Presence, Part 2: Presence in Me
I am thankful for the presence of Christ, who is all and in all. Continue reading
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My Three Religious Conversions
Now I sometimes say that I’m religiously bisexual because when I found Buddhist meditation, I felt more Christian than ever. Continue reading
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Mass Society and “Public” Sexuality Part 1: Contested Moral Terrain
In our investment in Mass Society, liberal-democratic societies have skilled us at politicizing the nonpolitical. Continue reading
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Fulfilled Needs and Desires: by Gift or by Effort?
A person who thinks of herself secretly as a completely autonomous self, with unlimited possibilities (for this concept is what society teaches), finds herself in an impossible situation. Continue reading
About me: I am a career educator and traveler at heart. My written work includes academic writing in philosophy and linguistics, English acquisition, and most intently in the areas of spiritual engagement with reality and what that means for our public lives.
My education is a mixture of formal study in philosophy, political theory, Biblical studies, and history, along with professional teaching certification in TESOL and in cognitive testing, and international teaching.
My travel experiences include a range of countries in Asia, Europe, Africa and North America. I have lived in Canada, the United States, Germany, Saudi Arabia, South Korea and Thailand. From those places I have traveled to many others besides.
I am a child of the 70’s and a “family man.” That means I have two wonderful kids who have been round the world with me.
Lastly, I am married to a wonderful woman since 2004. She is my partner, my friend, and my muse.
Thanks again for stopping by,
Raymond Klassen - Ideals and Identities 