“Why are people so intent on refusing others the right to see a special value in a life apart from the world, a life dedicated to God in prayer ‘on the mountain alone’ when the New Testament itself repeatedly shows Christ retiring to solitary prayer which he himself loved? Certainly one can find God ‘in the world’ and in an active life but this is not the only way, any more than the monastic life is the only way. There are varieties of graces and vocations in the Church and these varieties must always be respected.”

Merton, Thomas. “The Monastic Renewal: Problems and Prospects.” (1966) in Selected Essays. Edited with an introduction by Patrick F. O’Connell. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2013, pages 397-398.

Comment: in this new year, may you know freedom to walk the path you’ve been called to travel