International Thomas Merton Society
North-Central Connecticut Chapter
NCCITMS
Latest News
10/31/2025:
Chapter Announcements:
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The Winter 2026 North Central CT ITMS Chapter meeting is scheduled for Saturday 2/21/2026 at 8:30 p.m. E.T. at Holy Family Passionist Retreat Center in West Hartford, CT and over Zoom.
This Chapter Meeting is our special Public event that we co-sponsor with the Christian Contemplative Experience at Holy Family and will feature Sophfronia Scott, author of The Seeker and the Monk, for which she received the 2021 Louie Award from ITMS. You can get more information about this event and Sophfronia as well as register for it here: Saturday, February 21, 2026 8:30 A.M. to 4:30 P.M Anam Cara: Thomas Merton, and Pursuing Relationships That Enlighten Our Lives with Sophfronia Scott, Holy Family Passionist Retreat Center, 303 Tunxis Road West Hartford, CT 06107 and via Zoom |
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Engaging difficult times with Thomas Merton's Contemplative Insights!
As a monk, Thomas Merton wrote extensively about his evolving Christian Contemplative Spirituality and the profound insights he gained from living from deeper levels of self-awareness. In the 1960's, feeling called by God to re-engage with the world, Merton began addressing the major issues of his era— including Racial Justice and Civil Rights, Nonviolence and Peace, Political Conscience and Moral Responsibility, Global Solidarity and Human Rights —through the lens of his Christian contemplative understanding. Many of these issues remain relevant today, and Merton’s insights can help us develop a deeper perspective on how we understand and respond to current events.
A facilitated Contemplative Book Study, closely aligned with the North Central CT ITMS Chapter, will begin in January 2026. This study will focus on collections of Merton’s essays from the 1960s. hese groups will meet Monday mornings from 10:30 - 11:45 p.m. over Zoom. The first collection we'll be covering is Passion for Peace.
The exact dates, duration and suggested cost of this group will be publicized by mid-November! If this sounds interesting to you please send an email to: [email protected].
As a monk, Thomas Merton wrote extensively about his evolving Christian Contemplative Spirituality and the profound insights he gained from living from deeper levels of self-awareness. In the 1960's, feeling called by God to re-engage with the world, Merton began addressing the major issues of his era— including Racial Justice and Civil Rights, Nonviolence and Peace, Political Conscience and Moral Responsibility, Global Solidarity and Human Rights —through the lens of his Christian contemplative understanding. Many of these issues remain relevant today, and Merton’s insights can help us develop a deeper perspective on how we understand and respond to current events.
A facilitated Contemplative Book Study, closely aligned with the North Central CT ITMS Chapter, will begin in January 2026. This study will focus on collections of Merton’s essays from the 1960s. hese groups will meet Monday mornings from 10:30 - 11:45 p.m. over Zoom. The first collection we'll be covering is Passion for Peace.
The exact dates, duration and suggested cost of this group will be publicized by mid-November! If this sounds interesting to you please send an email to: [email protected].
Please visit our past meetings page to view and obtain the materials from prior meetings.
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Judy Collins, Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter and musician recently released, Spellbound, her newest album. One of the tracks is entitled Thomas Merton is a tribute to Merton. Here is a link to the lyrics:
https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/judycollins/thomasmerton.html |
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TUESDAYS WITH MERTON
A webinar series presented by the International Thomas Merton Society and the Center for Spirituality at St. Mary’s College in Notre Dame on the second Tuesday of each month. Free and open to the public. Registration required.
You may obtain material from past Chapter meetings and get more information about us on our past NCCITMS meetings here!
A webinar series presented by the International Thomas Merton Society and the Center for Spirituality at St. Mary’s College in Notre Dame on the second Tuesday of each month. Free and open to the public. Registration required.
You may obtain material from past Chapter meetings and get more information about us on our past NCCITMS meetings here!
We're Excited To Highlight A Book Authored By One Of Our Members
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Mystic, monk, and activist Thomas Merton asked those questions in the twentieth century. Writer Sophfronia Scott is asking them today.
In The Seeker and the Monk, Scott mines the extensive private journals of one of the most influential contemplative thinkers of the past for guidance on how to live in these fraught times. As a black woman who is not Catholic, Scott both learns from and pushes back against Merton, holding spirited, and intimate conversations on race, ambition, faith, activism, nature, prayer, friendship, and love. She asks: What is the connection between contemplation and action? Is there ever such a thing as a wrong answer to a spiritual question? How do we care about the brutality in the world while not becoming overwhelmed by it? By engaging in this lively discourse, readers will gain a steady sense of how to dwell more deeply within--and even to love--this despairing and radiant world. Visit our past meetings page to see the Spring 2021 Quarterly meeting at which Sophfronia spoke to us about her book! |
Our Typical Meeting Location
Our group generally meets at Holy Family Passionist Retreat Center in West Hartford, CT.
Meetings at Holy Family usually take place in the Center Building First Floor Classroom
Meetings at Holy Family usually take place in the Center Building First Floor Classroom
Other Information
Highlights from past NCCITMS meetings are located here!
Here is a link to Information on membership to the International Thomas Merton Society.
Here's a copy of our latest Brochure. Please distribute it to any friends you know that are interested in sharing their interest and admiration for Thomas Merton!
You may sign up to be on our Chapter's email list at the bottom of this page!
Here is a link to Information on membership to the International Thomas Merton Society.
Here's a copy of our latest Brochure. Please distribute it to any friends you know that are interested in sharing their interest and admiration for Thomas Merton!
You may sign up to be on our Chapter's email list at the bottom of this page!
About Us
The International Thomas Merton Society came into being in 1987 to promote a greater knowledge of the life and writings of Thomas Merton, one of the most influential religious figures of our time. Local Chapters and Affiliates of the ITMS across the world reflect a wide range of personal interest and approaches to Thomas Merton.
The ITMS sponsors biennial conferences devoted to Merton and his work and supports the writing of general-interest and scholarly books and articles about Merton. In addition the ITMS awards regular grants to researchers and scholarships to youth. It encourages a variety of activities such as Merton retreats.
The North Central Connecticut Chapter has been in existence for many years and was originally begun by Bill Williams and others in West Hartford, CT in 2006. In the Spring of 2016, Bill handed over the leadership of this Chapter to Mike Smoolca.
The ITMS sponsors biennial conferences devoted to Merton and his work and supports the writing of general-interest and scholarly books and articles about Merton. In addition the ITMS awards regular grants to researchers and scholarships to youth. It encourages a variety of activities such as Merton retreats.
The North Central Connecticut Chapter has been in existence for many years and was originally begun by Bill Williams and others in West Hartford, CT in 2006. In the Spring of 2016, Bill handed over the leadership of this Chapter to Mike Smoolca.
About The North-Central Connecticut Chapter |
NATURE OF OUR GROUP:
We are a spiritually-focused group dedicated to contemplative traditions, interfaith dialog, engaging our community in issues of compassion, peace, justice and finding truth in our personal lives. OUR VISION: The NCCITMS was formed to study the writings, work, life and influence of Thomas Merton, in the hope of inspiring, affirming and enriching every member to embrace life and the God who created it. THE PATH WE FOLLOW: Our focus will be to promote and encourage Christian Contemplative Spirituality, Thomas Merton workshops, covering all the interests of his life, days of recollection and study as well as interfaith dialog. OUR STRUCTURE: We envision that our group will be structured around the important themes of Merton's life. In particular, we see the following four special interest areas of study, focus and sharing:
LAST WORDS: Our motto: “Going clear out of the midst of all that is transitory and inconclusive. The return to the immense, the Primordial, the Unknown, to God who Loves, to the Silent, to the Holy, to the Merciful, to God Who is All.” -- Thomas Merton (Journal, March 22, 1961) |
Links and Events |
Contact Us |
If you have an interest in finding out more about our Chapter please email Mike Smoolca ([email protected]) or fill out the form below:
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