Question

Considering the apparent differences, how are both Merton and Day representative of American Catholicism? In what ways are they are similar? And, considering what we read from Williams' textbook, how do these fit into the broader picture of American Catholicism that we have studied?

Answer 1

Below is an absolutely correct answer :-

Both Merton and Day are figures comprehensively connected with the Catholic left, both changed over to Catholicism as opposed to being naturally introduced to it, and both occupied with certain practices that moderates and conventionalists loathe.

Day, who Francis refered to as speaking to "social equity and the privileges of people," has also been called "the most popular radical throughout the entire existence of the American Catholic Church" by the New Yorker. An rebel author, lobbyist, and individual from the mid 20th century bohemian Greenwich Village scene that likewise included John Reed and Eugene O'Neill, Day converted to Catholicism after the introduction of her little girl in 1927, after which she established the Catholic Worker newspaper, still in print today, just as a larger network of self-sufficient Catholic Worker communities that still runs soup kitchens and destitute havens all through the nation. Day was dynamic in the challenge developments against both World Wars, isolation, and the Vietnam War. In spite of the fact that something of a legend today to radicals and revolutionaries, she was also recently cited by conservative New York Times columnist David Brooks for instance of an individual who effectively carried on with an ethical life. Day also had an abortion before changing over to Catholicism, which she later communicated lament for, something the pope may have had as a top priority given his late pronouncements on that point.

Merton, refered to by Francis for instance of "the limit with regards to exchange and receptiveness to God,"was another bohemian turned Catholic. Born in France in 1915 to craftsman guardians from the U.S. what's more, New Zealand, Merton was a hard-celebrating understudy at Cambridge and afterward Columbia who changed over to Catholicism at that point entered a Trappist religious community in Kentucky at 26 years old. The narrative of his change turned into the great autobiography The Seven Story Mountain. A smash hit creator for an incredible duration, Merton was a conservative and solid supporter of the social equality movement in the U.S. who was likewise a backer for discourse and receptiveness to different religions. He had a solid enthusiasm for Zen Buddhism and Taoism and was close with the Dalai Lama. He likewise ridiculed his pledges by having an affair with a medical attendant a large portion of his age further down the road.

Both Merton and Day are considered long-shots for sainthood given their open left-wing governmental issues and chaotic individual lives. However, for a pope who has been pushing to move the congregation's concentration toward social equity issues, touts absolution for the individuals who stray from the way in their own lives, and needs to persuade common Americans that Catholic otherworldliness and social teaching still have something to offer them, putting the focus on Merton and Day bode well.

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