Thomas Merton: Innocent, Playful, Learner, Teacher!

Over the last two and a half weeks I have been immersed in the life, work and writings of Thomas Merton, American Trappist monk who died tragically in 1968 aged 52. You may ask the question why and it would be a sensible one. 

To discover what made him the acclaimed author of over 60 books; teacher and spiritual director of young men in the monastery; a collaborator with over 2,000 correspondents, producing over 21,000 pieces of correspondence; rapacious reader of the classics, the religious masters and contemporary literature; a social activist involved in the 1960’s ferment of race, nuclear weapons, Vietnam war and technology; and someone who fitted all this in between 7 periods of prayer, time for private prayer and the work-a-day life of a Trappist monk in an economically viable monastery.

The answer? He was an innocent and playful learner and teacher!

Innocent in that he never thought he knew the answers. There was always more to learn, more to know, more people to hear from, more inspiration to gather. He was like a small child who simply soaks up the world around them, making sense of it as they grow and become more and more engaged with the world. A cursory scan across his books will show that he assimilated ideas in such a way that he never became static. He was always becoming. 

Playful in that his sense of humour was never far from the surface. He played with ideas, engaged with people in a way that bought out their ideas and thoughts, and allowed space for others to become in the way he was. Listening to his lectures one discovers an openness, warmth, depth and willingness to listen his audience responds to with laughter, questions and discussion. His classroom was alive with playfulness.

Learner, because that was his vocation. Yes he was a monk, but the task of a monk is to be open to God and the creativity alive in the world. His journals, working notebooks and correspondence reveal a man on the search for something he hadn’t seen or heard before. He epitomises the life-long learner.

Teacher, because in learning, he taught. Teaching wasn’t a skill or method for him. It was the natural outcome of a life lived in a state of perpetual learning. And he still teaches today in that his life and works have inspired over 300 doctorate and masters theses, the International Thomas Merton Society of scholars and ever-growing corpus of books using his thought to expound everything from ecology to solitude to Zen! 

As parents, teachers and students are we, like Thomas Merton, innocent, playful, learners or teachers? And if not, why not?

Merton and Teachers.

“Do not depend on the hope of results. You may have to face the fact that your work will be apparently worthless and even achieve no result at all, if not perhaps results opposite to what you expect. As you get used to this idea, you start more and more to concentrate not on the results, but on the value, the rightness, the truth of the work itself. You gradually struggle less and less for an idea and more and more for specific people. In the end, it is the reality of personal relationship that saves everything.” 
― Thomas Merton

Merton said little about education and teaching, and this is not one of the things he said.  He was speaking to those involved in the peace movement in the '60's and he was warning against disappointment because our goals and targets for change never seem to be reached. Yet I suggest it could apply to teachers.

Teachers strive to be transformational and often the transformation they seek is delayed, to put it mildly.  How do you remain motivated, involved and focussed when the class in front of you is slipping into inertia, on the road to amnesia and a journey around some distant planet no scientist has yet discovered?

Merton suggests letting go of the destination and remembering why you are a teacher, why it is right to be teacher and why teachers are necessary.To let go of the idea of making a difference and to develop a relationship with the individuals, not the class and not the curriculum outcome.

He affirms what all good teachers know but need to be reminded of every now and then, that 'it is the reality of the personal relationship that saves everything', and in the case of teachers, everyone including the teacher herself.

It is interesting to note that he says we are to have that relationship with specific persons, not everyone. How does that work?  I suggest that in every class there are leaders, significant influencers whose 'buy-in' is required to move the whole class. Students who wield influence, are early adopters, who lead by achievement, it is these students we are to identify and to develop the particular relationship aimed at helping them achieve their goals, whether that be learning, prestige, success and/or the need for a relationship with teacher, students or parents.

Is this easy? No but perhaps it is the difference between burning out and remaining what you already are, a great teacher.

What I Learnt from the Arlo Guthrie Concert

At the recent Arlo Guthrie concert I had an ahha! moment.  In 2015 it will be 50 years since his iconic anti-war song, 'Alice's Restaurant' as written. It became a hit some 3-4 years later. By deduction that means I was about 12-13 when I first heard it, was introduced to Woody Guthrie, the legendary American songwriter and singer, Arlo's Dad, and started to read John Steinbeck. On stage at the concert were 2 generations of the Guthrie clan and one of the Steinbeck family, representatives of a dynasty which has played a significant role in my growing up.

For more on this go to http://bit.ly/15vOwGg

When are we Not Teachers?

Early on in my priesthood some asked, "Do you know when to be a priest and when to be yourself?" It seemed a weird question to me because my first answer was, "But I am always a priest!"

It has taken some years to come to grips with the magnitude of my reply, and I am still growing into it.  I am never not a priest.  Wherever I am that is who I am seen to be - God's representative in the pub, at the footy, on the beach, at work or at the shopping centre. Every thing I do is judged as the action  of a priest and not as Glenn Loughrey. It is a tough gig and anyone who says different is, I would suggest, not trying.

Now I have compounded the task by becoming a chaplain in a school - a 'teacher'. Teaching is not a job, it is a vocation, much like that of a priest. Teachers not only teach content in class, they model life for their students. They are responsible for the whole person and are therefore mentors of those whom they stand in front of. Everything they do, wherever they do it, plays a role in the effectiveness of their vocation.

For both teachers and priests this means they are to be:

• Mindful. Being mindful of who we are is our first task. Remaining in the present moment helps us to make this less frightening and more exciting, for you and for others. You are a teacher or a priest and others are looking to you for leadership. Your choices have set you apart for a life that is very different to those around you. It has it's cost but the benefits when lived to the full are mysterious and amazing.

• Disciplined. Yes, we are always free to do what we want to do, but just because we can, should we? We are called to a disciplined life with boundaries and responsibilities. If we embrace such a life we have the freedom to teach, mentor and pastor.

• Self-sacrificial.  Becoming a priest means I sacrifice my will for the will of God. I attempt to live in  a self-sacrificing manner exemplified by Jesus. No short cuts. Teachers have the same call. They are developing young people for the future and are challenged to sacrifice what they want to do for what they need to do.

• Other focussed. In both roles, life is not about you. You are not entitled to your own personal life.  It is a life lived in community and dialogue. You are now connected with those around you, for better or worse, and how you live will be noted by others, for you are there to show them the way.

• Aware of the '6 o'clock news' factor. How will what I am about to do, say or attend play out on the 6 o'clock news?  What will others say when they see or hear this? 

Vocations demand more of us than a job or a career for the raw material we are working with is far more precious than gold, money or prestige. What is in front of us is waiting to be moulded into the leaders and mentors of the future. Teenagers rarely listen to what we say, but they do learn from who we are.

No matter where we are, what we are doing or what we are saying we are always teachers and priests. Oh, by the way, if you're a parent, then  you have a three-fold vocation!

What a privilege!