I remember Merton

I couldn't agree more with your March 11 Et Cetera on the last-minute exclusion of Thomas Merton from the new U.S. catechism ("Merton: Persona Non Grata?"). I am a twenty-five-year-old Catholic and dedicated subscriber to Commonweal, and it fries my circuits that the bishops decided to exclude Merton. Merton's life and writings were a major reason why I decided to return to the Catholic Church after many years of nonparticipation. Bishop Donald Wuerl's defense of the bishops' decision--that "the generation we were speaking to had no idea who [Merton] was"--is simply untrue. Merton speaks to many of us young "drifters and seekers." That he is not included in a catechism written for young people is baffling.

BRIAN EMERSON

South Euclid, Ohio

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