Wednesday, February 14, 2007

love had a compass

Lax improvises on the prologue to St. John’s Gospel in his poem, The Circle of the Sun:

And in the beginning was love. Love made a sphere: all things
grew within it, the sphere then encompassed
beginnings and endings, beginning and end. Love
had a compass whose whirling dance traced out a
sphere of love in the void: in the center thereof
rose a fountain.
at

6 comments:

  1. JohnFebruary 14, 2007 at 5:43 PM

    Beth, did Lax ever publish any of his journals? Do you know if his estate plans on doing any publishing?

    thanks, John

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  2. beth cioffolettiFebruary 14, 2007 at 6:18 PM

    I don't think that Lax was a compulsive writer, like Merton.

    The only journal I know that he kept is the one from Patmos - and it is more poetic-like than just free-writing. I have a book, "When Love Had A Compass", which contains a lot of his poetry and the Patmos journal. I also have a book of correspondence between Merton and Lax, and the Circus of the Sun book (which I just adore). This last journal really intrigues me now - but I am also anxious to see those Jubilee magazines, and how they were put together - what Merton contributed, what Lax contributed, etc.

    I have a friend who is an ex-nun and when I told her I was looking for the Jubilee magazines, she got very excited - "Oh, those were the best, BRILLIANT!", she exclaimed...

    So ... stay tuned. I still might break down and get that Merton/Lax/Rice book.

    THanks for your comments, John.

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  3. JohnFebruary 14, 2007 at 6:32 PM

    Beth, I'll look for the "When Love..." book! I work at a Catholic hospital, I'll have to ask some of the sisters if they ever received the magizine, you never know...
    John

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  4. beth cioffolettiFebruary 15, 2007 at 8:32 AM

    You are up near Olean, aren't you John? I'm sure that St. Bonaventure's would have the Jubilee magazines, as well as a lot of other Lax stuff. I'm not sure, but I think that St. Bonaventure's is the main place that is preserving the Lax material.

    My sister does not live far from Olean, and was the director of a nursing home for nuns just across the street from St. Bonnie's for many years.

    That's another trip I need to take - a visit to see my sister!

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  5. Pilgrim PathFebruary 15, 2007 at 12:43 PM

    Have you read "The Way of the Dreamcatcher?' by Steve Georgiou. It's about a young seeker's (Georgiou) encounter with Lax on Patmos over a 7 year period. A very good read.

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  6. beth cioffolettiFebruary 15, 2007 at 7:07 PM

    I have heard of that book, Rich. It sounds like a good read. Thanks for the comment.

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