Thomas Merton's views on Islam and Sufism

One of the unique ideas of Thomas Merton, a catholic reverend, was the idea of interreligious dialogue to which he has pointed out in a multitude of his essays and articles. Merton aimed to expand the notion of interreligious dialogue in order to include religions other than Christianity as well, and by stressing the similarities in the belief system and religious rituals of other religions with that of Christianity, he tried to pave the way towards the enrichment of religious experience for the believers of all religions and to further develop their religious bonds with Christianity. In this study, Thomas Merton’s thoughts on Islam, especially that of Islamic Sufism and Mysticism are discussed. While expounding on his interreligious dialogue, the discourse between Islam and Christianity is examined in depth. The ideas of Merton, especially that of Sufism including recitation, meditation, to see yourself as nothing without God, and to see God as your only source of existence are discussed in this study. Merton’s view on Sufism as what brings Christianity and Islam together, as the findings of this study suggest, remains both a highly plausible and rather controversial stance that needs further investigation.