NSoC 12: The Pure Heart

See Notes on this series...

The previous few chapters seem ethereal and mystical to me, but Merton cracks the whip in this practical chapter as he deals with barriers to the pure heart.

The desires and cares of this world interfere with interior solitude. Merton implores us to "avoid the noise and the business of men" and their grab-assing, as my father would say. We must be on guard against their salesmanship and advertising and the draw to be consumers, without mere self-righteous condemnation against these activities. Merton stresses that he is not against the "legitimate" pleasures of life but he does question what is now considered legitimate.

Merton calls for "ascetic self-discipline" among those who would be contemplatives. He says that one of the foundational moral truths that we have lost is that men and women should be able to occasionally say "no" to their appetites rather than being controlled or enslaved by them. He mentions smoking and alcohol directly, and then he hits the passivity of television pretty hard, though he admits to never watching it. He recommends the bucolic life but doesn't condemn those who dwell in cities, exhorting them to shun the noise and nurture their appetites for the "healing silence of recollection."

Merton kicks it up a notch when he drops the c-bomb: "chastity." He says that sex is the most difficult natural appetite to control and therefore more attention should be paid to it. Sex is not evil, but undue attention to it outside of the "ordinate norms" within marriage is. He says that placing guilt on people about it does nothing to help control it, but he stresses that its control is possible, desirable, and essential to the contemplative life. He says that discipline, properly exercised, fosters interior prayer as the contemplative relies on the strength of a higher power greater than himself and his nature.

Quaff:
I know too well some of the pitfalls Merton warns against in this chapter. For a long time the passivity of television was my drug of choice, my coping mechanism. I wish I had some of those hours back.

In the lives of my children I see the draw of the advertiser and the quest for instant gratification. I try very hard to point out to them the goals and methods of a consumer society, but $60 jeans and Hannah Montana beach towels pose a formidable enemy.

About all I should say concerning chastity is that I'm fortunate to be married. I had a temporary experience with what Merton talked about a few summers ago when my wife spent two months in China. What a struggle. We vowed never to put each other through that again. I try not to think about what circumstances may be one day in the future.

I've also witnessed a little too personally the effects of undisciplined chastity (if that's not an oxymoron). I've seen examples of carelessness, addiction, and brazen boldness in flaunting the bounds of chastity, and just those examples from church leaders. We must all be ever vigilant and discerning, keeping our eyes clear, our minds pure, and our egos in check. Piece of cake, no?

Overall, this was a very practical and thought-provoking chapter. Spank you very much, Fr. Louis.

Quip:
I'll never forget being on a mission trip with two other men whose wives were with mine in China. A newlywed couple were on the trip with us, quartered together in less than private accommodations. The new husband bemoaned the lack of privacy with his bride and the restraint the situation demanded of him. We three China-widowers trumped his restraint as we refrained from beating the crap out of him.

Quiz:
If Merton thought television was an affront to contemplation in the late 1960s, what would he think about it today? What would he think about the internet's contribution to chastity?

Query:

• What natural appetites should I say "no" to more often?
• What societal noises should I work on tuning out?
• How can I condition my children to be skeptical about the ways of the consumer world without being a raving fundamentalist?
• How can I maintain my chastity when circumstances make it difficult?
• How can I pass on chaste traits to my children?