An Enemy of the Thomas Merton Society
Introduction
ICN continues its series on the death facts of Thomas Merton. (See editorial page 4). This article is excerpted for space reasons. (See the ICN website for the full text.)
IstillremembervividlymyexcitementahalfcenturyagowhenI discoveredHenrikIbsensgreatplay, ’ AnEnemyofthePeople,inacollection ofIbsenscompleteworksthatIhad ’ boughttheyearofmygraduation fromcollege.Ihadneverbefore encounteredsuchagreatdepictionof oneofthemajorshortcomingsofthe humanrace,ourtendencytoreject thetruthwhenstrongvestedinterestsaretiedupinfalsehood,and thereitwas,condensedintodramatic formthatonecouldtakeininalittle morethananhour.
Inanutshell,theprincipalprotagonist,ThomasStockmann,amedical doctorinasmallNorwegiantown, throughhisresearchhasdiscovered thatbeyondashadowofadoubtthe causeofaseriesofmysteriousdeaths thathavechilledthetownstourist’ economyispollutionofthewater supplybytheotherpillarofthetown's economy,atannery.
Hereallyhasitdowntoascientific certainty,andhecanhardlywaitto sharehisfindingswitheveryone. Understandably,heregardshimself asaheroforwhathehasfoundand thinksthathisfellowtownsmenwill seehimthatwayaswell.Likeadoctor performingathisbest,hehascorrectlydiagnosedtheillness,thefirst necessarystepforcuringit.
Buthowwrongheturnedouttobe! Instead,hisexperienceiscapturedby thetitleoftheplay,withDr. Stockmannasthetitlecharacter.He hadlearnedtoomuchforhisown good.Hewasluckynottohavebeen tarredandfeatheredandrunoutof townonarail.
Another Disquieting Discovery
Nowletusflashforwardto2018. HughTurleyandIhaddiscovered thatthealmostuniversallybelieved storythatthegreatanti-warwriter andTrappistmonk,ThomasMerton, diedbyaccidentalelectrocutionin December1968byafaultyfanthathe toucheduponemergingfroma showerwhileataconferencein Thailandisalmostcertainlyfalse.
Throughresearch,wehadlearned thataccordingtoallthelocaldocumentation,thedeathcertificate,the doctorscertificate,andthepolice ’ report,thecauseofdeathhadbeen “heartfailure”andthatithadalso beenreportedthatwayintheThai newsorgans.Thepolice—inatleast whatispurportedtobetheir
Martin, Hyattsville, Maryland
report—hadconcludedthatMerton wasalreadydeadwhenhefellintoa faninhisbedroominwhichafaulty cord“hadbeeninstalled.”
Thepolicereportdescribedhow Mertonwasfoundinhisbedroomlying onhisback,wearingonlyshorts,with thefanlyingacrosshisbody.Thestand ofthefloorfanthathadleftburnson hisbodyhadalsoleftburnmarksonthe shorts.Thisdescriptionofthedeath sceneiscorroboratedbyadiagram drawnbyoneofthewitnessesand, mostimportantly,bytwophotographs takenbyanotherofthewitnesses.
Thatsceneasdescribedvirtually rulesoutanypossibilitythatMerton waswetfromashowerwhenhe encounteredthefan,and,infact,the onlymentionofashowerinany contemporaryaccountwasinthe statementbythebestwitnessthathe lookedlikehemighthavebeengetting readytotakeashower.
Theonlysubstantivedifference betweentheobservations—asopposed totheconclusions—ofthewitnesses andthepolicereportisthatthe witnessessawableedingwoundinthe backofMertonshead.Thepolicemade ’ nomentionofit.
Noautopsywasperformed, althoughtheThaiauthorities indicated,falsely,thatonehadbeen done“inaccordancewithlaw.”In 1980,Mertonssecretaryathishome ’ GethsemaniAbbeyinKentucky, BrotherPatrickHart,toldthepress, incredibleasitmaysound,thatthey hadbeentoldthatifanautopsyhad beendoneinThailand,Thailaw requiredthatthedeceasedwould havetobeburiedinThailand.
TheU.S.militaryhadhastilytaken possessionofthebodyandmoveditto aU.S.militaryhospital,wherean autopsycouldhavebeendone,but onewasnotdonethereeitherorwhen thebodywasreturnedtoKentucky.
Meanwhile,whattheAmerican publicwastold,andthereforewhat theythoughttheyknew,wassimply whatwasreportedbytheAssociated Press,thatisthat,accordingto anonymous“Catholicsources,” Mertonhadbeenaccidentally electrocutedbyafaultyfan.
Doubtlesstheimagethatalmost everyoneconjuredupintheirminds wassomesqualid,run-downThird Worldplacewithfaultyequipment everywhereandMertonhadnot exercisedthepropercautionwhen handlingit.
Infact,theconferencewasata fairlymodernRedCrossretreat centerinasuburbofBangkokwith lotsofamenities.Butwhosever ’ heardofahouseholdappliancekilling anyone,intheThirdWorldorelsewhere,exceptmaybeinoneofthose rareinstanceswhereaplugged-in radioorhairdryerorsomesuchfalls intoabathtub?Peoplemighteven havepaintedintothepictureabath orashowerintheirmindstogetthat electricity-conductingwaterintoit.
Iimaginethathardlyanyone noticedatthetimethattherewasno mentionofabathorashowerinthat earlynewsreport.Therewouldnotbe suchmentionuntilalmostfiveyears laterwhenBrotherPatrickwrotein thepostscripttothe1973volumethat heco-edited, TheAsianJournalof ThomasMerton,thatMertonwaswet fromhavingjusttakenashowerwhen hetouchedthefaultyfan.AsIwrote inmyJune7,2018,article,Paradeof“ WhoppersaboutThomasMertons ’ Death“BrotherPatrickistheman ”, who,ineffect,addedwatertothe Mertondeathrecipe,andhedidit almostfiveyearsaftertheevent.”
Healsodiditwithoutashredof evidencetosupportit,andheadmittedtousinatelephonemessagethat hehadnone,rather,hesaid,the weatherwas“steamy”andMerton “musthavetakenashower.”
Butthatwasnothowhehad writtenit,anditwasnotlongbeforea showerorabathbecamepartofthe deathpictureaspaintedbyvirtually every“authority”onThomas Mertonslife,byevery“expert,”ifyou ’ will,asnotedinParadeofWhop“ persandasonecanseefurther ” sampledonourwebsiteforthebook thatHughTurleyandIwrote, The MartyrdomofThomasMerton:An Investigation.
ThestoryofThomasMerton havingaccidentallyelectrocuted himselfwhilewetfromashoweror bathhadbeen,ineffect,institutionalizedthroughrepetitionratherthan throughevidencewhenwecameout withthebookinMarchof2018.
Thereislotsmoreinthebookthat showsthattherewasneveratraceof whatonemightcall“analysis”behind
theseeminglyconfidentassertionsof Merton“experts”onhowtheman died,butwhatwehavebriefly presentedhereatleastbeginstotell thestory.
The International Thomas Merton Society
Ontheeveofpublication,wefound ourselvesinwhatonemightcall“Dr. Stockmannterritory.”Mertonmight notbeaswellknownastwoother violentdeathvictimsofquestionable originin1968,MartinLutherKing, Jr.andRobertKennedy,butatleastin onequarterheisverywellknownand admired.Thisisfrompage2ofthe book:
“TheInternationalThomasMerton Society(ITMS),formedin1987,has46 chaptersintheUnitedStatesand thereare19chaptersandaffiliated societiesinothercountries.TheITMS hasfour-dayconferencesonabiennial basisatvarioussites.Twoofthefirst 13conferenceswereinCanada;the restwereintheUnitedStates.”
Whataperfectnaturalaudiencefor thebook,wethought.Howeager shouldtheybetodiscoverthatthe deathofthemantheyadmirewasnot thefluke,thealmostridiculous occurrencethatwehadallbeenledto believeitwasalltheseyears!Abig reasonwhyweexpectedourbooktobe wellreceivedbytheITMSisreflected inthefollowingpoem,whichIthought uplater,andinthebookstitle: ’ Thomas Mertons Martyrdom ’ Theysayhisdeathwasmeaningless.
Thatswhattheywantusto ’ swallow.
Butinlightofalltheevidence, Theirargumentringshollow. Hislifewasfullofpurpose, Butwemusttotheworldconfide: Hiswordshadnomoremeaning Thanthethingsforwhichhedied.
Unreportedinthebookisthefact thattheITMSalsoputsoutfour publicationsayearcalled TheMerton Seasonal TheMerton as wellas Annual.Whatperfectvenuesthey wouldbe,wethought,forgettingout theword!
Infact,ourbookhasbeenwell received.Onecanseeitfromthe customersreviewsonand ’ Amazon particularlyfromanumberofarticles thathavebeenwrittenaboutit,noted atthebookswebsite.Forabookthat ’ hasreceivednopublicityfromthe media,includingthemajorCatholic media,saleshavebeengoodandsteady.
Turley and Martin as Dr. Thomas Stockmann
FromtheITMS,though,ithas beentheDr.Stockmanntreatment forus.Todate,weknowofonlyone
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reviewinaregularpublicationthat onemightcharacterizeasnegative. ThatwasintheITMSsWinter2018 ’ editionof ,itsTheMertonSeasonal 50anniversaryvolumeonMertons th ’ demise.Onemaygathersomethingof itsflavorbyreadingmyresponsetoit entitled,“BefuddledJurorinThomas MertonBookVerdict.”AnotherITMS stalwart,ProfessorGregHillis,a MertonauthorityatBellarmine University,pannedourbooktohis Twitterfollowers.Onecanreadmy defenseagainsthisassaultin“ProfessorSecretlyTrashesMertonBook.”
Ourattemptstopenetratethe pagesofITMSpublicationshave,up tonow,beenrebuffed.Wesubmitted “NewDirectionsMisdirectionin ’ ThomasMertonsDeath”to ’ The MertonAnnual.(seeICNWinter 2018/19,page7)Wealsosubmitted anarticletoon TheMertonSeasonal thesubjectoftheofficialThai documentsaboutMertonsdeathand ’ didnotevenreceivethecourtesyofa responsefromtheeditor.
Therequirementsforpresenting papersatthebiennialmeetingofthe ITMSare,asisusuallythecasefor suchacademicgatherings,somewhat lessstringentthanforpublicationin thelimitedspaceinjournals.Consequently,wehadhighexpectationsfor ourpresentationproposalforthe ITMSs16meeting,whichtookplace ’ th atSantaClaraUniversityinSanta Clara,California,thispastJune.
Wefollowedtheproposalrequirementstotheletterandsubmittedit wellbeforethedeadline.Itwas264 wordsinlengthwiththetitle,“The EpistemologyofThomasMertons ’ Death.”Theconcludingsentence was,“Weproposetoexaminehowthe falsebath/showerstoryhaspersisted forfiftyyears.”
Howcouldpeoplewhoclaimtocare aboutThomasMertonnotwantto hearwhattheleadingauthoritieson hisdeathhavetosay?Ourbookwas out,andeveniftheymighthave discoveredsomethingwithwhich theythinktheycouldtakeissue,the occasionofourpresentationofthe paperwouldhavepresentedthe perfectopportunityforit.Our proposedpaper,however,wasrejected withoutexplanation.Weeven followedupwithapoliteprotest,but therejectionheldfirm.
Macbeth in California
Asitturnedout,though,our presenceatthegrandITMSmeeting wasalmostpalpable.Ittooktheform thatonemightcomparetoBanquos’ ghost.Theopeningpresidential addressonJune27byMarkC.Meade wasascanteightparagraphsin length.Thetitleistakenfromaquote fromMerton,“TheRealityofPersonalRelationshipsSavesEverything,”givinglittleclueastowhatit isreallyabout.
Asitturnsout,itsmainlyaboutus ’ andourbook,anditbordersonthe
slanderous.Infact,ourwork,one gathers,issomethingfromwhichthe assortedscholarsandotherprofessed Mertonadmirersmeetingthereat “TheJesuitUniversityinSilicon Valley”mustbesaved.
Thetitlesentenceofthesixth paragraphreads,“Weareliving throughatimeoflowtrustininstitutions.”Thatsetsthestageforthekey followingparagraphs:
“Inthisatmosphereoflowtrust, thereisarebellionagainstthe intellectualauthorityformerlyvested ininstitutions.Thereisadistrustof themediaandthescientificcommunity.TheaverageGoogleuseris deemedanexpertbecauseinformationofallqualitylevelsissoeasily acquired.
“Whenwebanishtheexperts,we fueltheflamesofconspiracy.Most academicstudiesseemtoconclude thatconspiraciesarenotnewandnot particulartothispointinhistory. Liketherevoltagainstexperts,no politicalpartyhasamonopolyon conspiracy.Yet,giventhetroubles socialmediagiantslikeFacebook havehadinpreventingtherapid spreadandwidepopularityof untruthsinthe2016U.S.presidential election,Ifinditdifficulttothinkthis isnothavingadetrimentaleffecton ourcollectivegriponreality.
“Thoughconspiracytheorieshave existedinMertonstudiesconcerning hisdeathfromthebeginning,wehave witnessedtheappearanceoftwo booksonthesubjectjustsincethelast conference.Iamallinfavoroffactfindingingoodfaithandinworking toseekthetruthtogetherresponsibly. Ifthegoalisamoreaccuratenarrativeoftheeventssurrounding Mertonslastday,Iamsupportive ’ onlyifitdoesnotservetoovershadow theoverarchingmeaningofthe99.9 percentoftherestofhislife.However,iftheend,conclusivefindings in remainelusivewhilesomewriters employvariantdetailsofthelastday ofMertonslifetodisparagethe ’ reputationoftrustedscholarsof Mertonslife,pleasecountmeout. ’”
Thereyouhaveit.Wearenothing but“conspiracy”mongerswhose mainpurpose,itseems,wastolessen theprestigeofaugustauthority figuresinMarkC.Meadesworld ’. Againstalltheevidencethatwehave assiduouslycollected,itisthose “experts,”those“trustedscholars,” thatMeade'slistenersmustcontinue comfortablytobelieve,nevermind thattheyhave,eitherknowinglyor unknowingly,repeatedforhalfa centurywhatwehaveshowntobe clearfalsehoods.*
AndconsiderthelogicofMeades’ penultimatesentence.Couldhebe sufferingfromTurley-Martin derangementsyndrome?Whythebig fearthatwhatwehavefoundabout thenatureofMertonsdeathmight ’ overshadowhislife?
So,harkingbacktothetitleofthe address,how,exactly,arethegood membersoftheITMStobesaved
fromtheirreverentanddisrespectful likesofTurleyandMartin?ontinu-C ingthemetaphor,aswehavepointed out,wepolitelyknockedatthedoor butweretold,insomanywords,togo away.Wehavebeeneagerfromthe verybeginningtohaveafrankand opendialoguewithanypersoninthe InternationalThomasMerton Societythatwecanfind,but,asyou cansee,wehavebeenrebuffedat everyturn.
TheproblemtowhichMeadefails tofaceupinhisaddressisthatany genuinedialoguewithindependent truthseekerslikeTurleyandme aboutthecauseofThomasMertons’ deathis,initself,athreattohiscozy community.Theveritablefaceofthat communitygracedthecoverofthe Summer2019issueof TheMerton Seasonal,BrotherPatrickHart,the fabricatoroftheshowerstory.
BrotherPatrickdiedthispast Februaryattheageof93,andthe summerissueofthe was Seasonal largelygivenovertoeulogizinghim. Theonlymentionthatweseeof Mertonsdeathinthatissuecomesin ’
Judgeforyourself.ICNhasafreshsupply ofcopiesofthe MartyrdomofThomas Merton availabletoreadersuponrequest. (email:pjjamie@telus.net.(Seerelated editorial,Page4.)
afondrecollectionofatourof GethsemaniAbbeyconductedby BrotherPatrick. ThenarratorisMaryR. Somerville,formerpresidentofthe AmericanLibraryAssociationanda memberoftheThomasMerton LegacyTrust.ThetourwasconductedforagroupofSomervilles’ Protestantfriends,thoughshedoes notsaywhenthetourtookplace. BrotherPatrickgladlyfielded questionsfromthegroup: Thenfromasavvyquestioner,“Did theCIAkillMerton?”Brother Patrick:“Mertonwasalwaysaklutz, nevertobetrustedwithmachinery. Hewasaccidentprone.Hisdeathwas justthat,anaccident.”
Thus,BrotherPatrickcontinued tosullyMertonsmemorywhile ’ appearingtoexalthimthroughout
hisownlonglife.MarkMeade similarlyundercutsMertonslegacy’ withthefirstofourtwoquoted paragraphsinhispresidential address.Headoptsanalmostreverentialattitudetowardourprecious institutionslikethenewsmedia.He seemsalmosttobepiningfortheday whenCBS'sWalterCronkitewas“the mosttrustedmaninAmerica”and almosteveryonetooktheconclusions oftheWarrenCommissionasgospel.
NothingthatMeadesaidinhis addresswouldhavemadeMertonspin inhisgravemorethanthat.Consider theMertonquotewithwhichIbegin myessay,“IstheAmericanPressthe EnemyofthePeople?”
My“SeventeenTechniquesfor TruthSuppression,”published20 yearsago,isaimedprimarilyatthe nationalnewsmedia,butonecan recognizeMeadesuseofnos.five,six, ’ andsevenishisspeech.Theyare, respectively,“Calltheskeptics names,”Impugnmotives,”and “Invokeauthority.”Elaborating furtheronnumberfive,wesay,“You mustthencarefullyavoidfairand opendebatewithanyofthepeople youhavethusmaligned.”
Whenitcomesdowntochoosing truthor“personalrelationships,” outgoingInternationalThomas MertonSocietypresident,MarkC. Meade,unfortunately,hasdemonstratedaclearpreferenceforthe latter.Inthat,fromourexperience,he hasbeencompletelyrepresentativeof theorganizationasawhole.Itwould nothavesurprisedHenrikIbsen.
*TheotherbooktowhichMeade refersismorethanlikelyJerome Donovans’ ThomasMertonMeetsthe Unspeakable:RendezvousinThailand. Meadescriticalcomments, ’ though,onecaneasilysee,are primarilydirectedatourwork.
DavidMartinOctober31,2019 ,
I CNBooksAvailable: Victoria DemerstoDeRoo–150Yearsof CatholicHistoryonVancouver Island,1997;
TheLaceyLandSaga–The ‘Vindication’ofRemiDeRoo–PoliticalSea-changeintheCatholic Church ,2010,bothbyPatrick Jamieson
778-433-0819