Thomas Merton and Leo Szilard: The Parallel Paths of a Monk and a Nuclear Physicist

Thomas Merton and Leo Szilard, two of the seminal religious and scientific figures of the twentieth century, briefly connected on the issue of the danger of atomic weaponry. This meeting resulted from paths that guided them to an “orbiting” or distancing from human society through a phase of intelle...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Zygon
Main Author: Thompson, Phillip M. (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Wiley-Blackwell 2004
In: Zygon
Year: 2004, Volume: 39, Issue: 4, Pages: 979-986
Further subjects:B Leo Szilard
B Religion and science
B Peace Movement
B Walker Percy
B angelism
B nuclear science
B Thomas Merton
B atomic bomb
B contemplative
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Summary:Thomas Merton and Leo Szilard, two of the seminal religious and scientific figures of the twentieth century, briefly connected on the issue of the danger of atomic weaponry. This meeting resulted from paths that guided them to an “orbiting” or distancing from human society through a phase of intellectual (Szilard) or spiritual (Merton) abstraction followed by a return to the concerns of human society. These parallel trajectories and their eventual intersection reflect both the similarities and differences in their respective backgrounds. The briefness of their contacts and the unfulfilled possibilities from such contacts also suggest the importance of a continuing dialogue between major figures in religion and science.
ISSN:1467-9744
Contains:Enthalten in: Zygon
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9744.2004.00632.x