The Cistercian Fathers and Their Monastic Theology

"I bowed my head surveying Merton's erudition, captured here in his careful reading of Saint Bernard, aligned with skills that deployed his scholarship as a spur to his students' contemplation. The energy he expended on preparing classes, while maintaining daily life as monk and writer, is extraordinary. No less impressive is the wildly capacious skill-set exhibited by Patrick O'Connell as he introduces and annotates Merton's `notes.' His expert summoning of the entire Merton corpus to bear on whatever Merton text he annotates astounds me. O'Connell wins first honors as the most agile transmitter of Merton's legacy. My admiring his accomplishment here and elsewhere defies adequate expression."Jonathan Montaldo Co-editor of We Are Already One: Thomas Merton's Message of Hope
"Anticipating by a number of years the Second Vatican Council's call for religious orders to return to the wisdom of their founders, Merton's in-depth teaching notes, skillfully annotated by Patrick F. O'Connell, show us Merton's intimate knowledge of the works of St. Bernard, St. Aelred, and others, along with his giftedness as a teacher and an interpreter of this rich tradition."Paul M. Pearson, Director, Thomas Merton Center
"This book allows the reader to follow Merton as he unpacks the wisdom of the Cistercian heritage. And even though it does require some effort the reward is more than worth the work."Cistercian Studies Quarterly