1962-03-06, TALS[c] from Fox, James, 'Here we come again knocking at your door just as Lent approches, with a little'

Identity elements

Reference code

US US-kylobm TMC-1b-B-102-#33

Name and location of repository

Level of description

Item

Title

1962-03-06, TALS[c] from Fox, James, 'Here we come again knocking at your door just as Lent approches, with a little'

Date(s)

  • 1962 March 6 (Creation)

Extent

1 page(s); Carbon copy of a typed signed letter with holograph annotations.

Name of creator

(1896-1987)

Biographical history

Dom James Fox came to Gethsemani in 1927. He was serving as guestmaster when Merton's younger brother, John Paul, visited the monastery, and Fox made arrangements for John Paul's baptism. In 1948, Fox was elected abbot after the death of Dom Frederic Dunne. Fox had a keen business sense, a graduate of Harvard Business School prior to entering Gethsemani, and helped Gethsemani support itself financially through mechanization of the farm and through establishment of a mail order cheese and bourbon fruit cake business. Merton was not a fan of this mechanization, the cheese business, and had other philosophical differences with Fox. Although much has been written about their rocky relationship at times, Fox went out of his way to ensure that Merton had greater solitude in his later years, a decision which likely kept Merton at Gethsemani. He had enough faith in Merton to appoint him as his novice master and as Fox's personal confessor. Fox would eventually step down as abbot in 1967 to pursue to live as a hermit as Merton had done. (Source: The Thomas Merton Encyclopedia, edited by William Shannon, Christine Bochen, and Patrick O'Connell, pp.160-161.)

Content and structure elements

Scope and content

First lines: "Here we come again knocking at your door just as Lent approches, with a little penance for our"... Contents index: [originally filed in a collection of Censors Reports kept by James Fox - see also the "Censors Reports" file under "Christian Ethics and Nuclear War" (possibly also referring to "Target Equals City" and "Peace: Christian Duties and Responsibilities")].

System of arrangement

Conditions of access and use elements

Conditions governing access

Technical access

Conditions governing reproduction

Languages of the material

  • English

Scripts of the material

    Language and script notes

    Finding aids

    Acquisition and appraisal elements

    Custodial history

    Immediate source of acquisition

    The donor or source was: Gethsemani Abbey Archives.

    Appraisal, destruction and scheduling information

    Accruals

    Related materials elements

    Existence and location of originals

    Existence and location of copies

    Related archival materials

    Related descriptions

    Notes element

    Specialized notes

    Alternative identifier(s)

    Description control element

    Rules or conventions

    Sources used

    Access points

    Subject access points

    Place access points

    Name access points

    Genre access points

    Accession area