Dom Vital Klinski was born in Poland. In 1904, he entered the Cistercian Abbey of Achel in Belgium and was elected their abbot in 1920. By 1927, he left for the United States to join Gethsemani. He was Merton's confessor at the time of correspondence. (Source: «The School of Charity», p. 10.)
Sr. John Marie Klisiewicz was a Sister of St. Ann of Providence at Mount Saint Ann in Ebensburg, Pennsylvania.
Perry Knowlton was an editor and later Vice President of Curtis Brown publishers.
Franz Cardinal König was Archbishop of Vienna, Austria.
Frank Kowalski was a United States Representative for Connecticut. He writes from his office in Washington, D.C. Kowalski retired from the military as a colonel in 1958 and had served under Dwight Eisenhower in World War II. He was a Democrat and voted pro-labor and against improper utilization of the armed forces. In 1962, inspired by "Original Child Bomb", he asks Merton to write a peace prayer to be read in Congress. Later, Kowalski would serve on the Subversive Activities Control Board. (Source: "Kowalski, Frank." «New York Times» obituary. 1974. Online. Biography Reference Bank. H.W. Wilson. Bellarmine University Library, Louisville, KY. 2005/05/24. ‹http://vnweb.hwwilsonweb.com›.)
Marcelle Kraemer-Bach and Pierre Kraemer-Raine were from the French law firm representing the Abbey of Gethsemani while Marie Tadié, a translator and agent for some of Merton's works in romance languages, was threatening a law suit concerning her role as publishing agent. Tadié decided not to file the law suit.
Gilda Kuhlman was Production Editor for New Directions and writes from Norfolk, Connecticut.
Pedro Juan Labarthe was a poet originally from Latin American and a friend of Ernesto Cardenal and Cesar Vallejo. He writes from Hudson, Illinois.
Lionel Landry was Director of the Asia Society, a group found in 1956 to promote intercultural dialog between Asia and the United States. Landry writes from New York.
Alfred H. Lane was Head of the Gift and Exchange office of Columbia University in New York.
Sarah Lansdell was an art critic for the Louisville Courier Journal. She wrote an article in November of 1964 concerning the drawings Merton was exhibiting at Spalding College.
Archbishop (later elevated to Cardinal) Arcadio Larraona was a head of the Sacred Congregation for Religious at the Vatican. He wrote the prologue to the Italian translation of «The Ascent to Truth».
Pasteur Jean Lasserre was a traveling secretary of the International Fellowship of Reconciliation (IFOR) and worked with Jean Goss (see the "Goss-Mayr, Hildegard" file). He writes from Lyon, France. In France, IFOR was called the Mouvement International de la Réconciliation (MIR). He was the author of a number of books on a Christian responsibility for peace and non-violence.
Irving Laucks writes from Santa Barbara, California.
Sr. Mary Laurence writes from Holy Cross Abbey in the United Kingdom.
John Lawrence was Editor of «Frontier», a literary journal from London.
Sr. Marie Lawrence was a Religious Sister of Mercy from Albany, New York.
Robert Lax was a minimalist poet and Merton's closest friend from his Columbia University days. Bob Lax was born in Olean, New York, into a Jewish family. His family later moved to New York. At Columbia, he met Merton through mutual involvement in the university's humorous magazine, «The Columbia Jester». Lax's spirituality influenced Merton's acceptance of religion and conversion to Catholicism in 1938, Lax having later been influenced by Merton and converting to Catholicism in 1943. The two friends stayed in contact after graduating from Columbia and spent time together with Ed Rice at a cottage in Olean after Merton finished his Masters degree in 1939. Lax attended Merton's ordination to the priesthood in 1949. Lax wrote for and edited such magazines as «Pax» and «Jubilee» and was on staff at «The New Yorker». In 1962, he went into self-imposed exile from the United States and lived much of his life until his later years on the Greek islands of Patmos, Lesvos and Kalymnos. He returned to Olean, New York, in the summer of 2000, where he died in his sleep on September 26. (Sources: «The Road to Joy», p. 142; and The Thomas Merton Encyclopedia, p. 249.)
Richard C. Leach was President of Argus Communications in Chicago, Illinois. He asks Merton to write a homily for Easter to be included in a series written and recorded by a number of prominent Christian names from various denominations. His sermon was later published separately as the book He Is Risen.
Fr. John Leary was a Jesuit priest and President of Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington.
Paris Leary writes from New Paltz, New York. The two letters are listed as from Paris Leary and Robert Kelly, editors at Doubleday, but are signed exclusively by Paris Leary.
Juan Liscano was a poet, literary critic, essayist and editor of such literary magazines as «Zona Franca». He writes from Caracas, Venezuela.
Claire Livingston was a poet and professional violinist who taught at North Hennepin State Junior College in Osseo, Minnesota. Her husband, Ray (see "Livingston, Ray F." file), was first in contact with Merton and sent him some of Claire's poetry. Merton included a number of her poems, and their eleven year old son Ira's poems, in the fourth edition of «Monks Pond». Livingston was also on the board of editors for the literary magazine «Karamus». (Source: Monks Pond, pp. 348.)
Ray Livingston was chair of the Department of English at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Fr. Loftus served as the academic dean of Bellarmine College from 1953 until his death in 1969. He chair the committee for the establishment of a collection of Merton's papers at Bellarmine. In 1960, Merton would sometimes visit . Loftus was a fan of Merton's work and excited about establishing a connection with Bellarmine.
Kenneth A. Lohf was Assistant Librarian for Special Collections at Columbia University in New York.
Fr. Benedict Lohr was a Trappist monk of Holy Cross Abbey in Berryville, Virginia. He was writing as editor of «Monastic Studies» and asked if Merton would contribute a piece for an issue about the Advent-Nativity Mystery.
Sr. Lone was a Carmelite nun from Norfolk, England.
Fr. Johann Lotz was a German Jesuit priest and Catholic existentialist philosopher who was the author of a number of book and was planning to visit Merton at Gethsemani.
Dom André Louf was a Cistercian monk and author of books on contemplative prayer. He was of the abbey of Sainte-Marie-du-Mont at Mont-des-Cats in France. In 1963, he became abbot of this monastery.