Reading list

Modern Contemplatives

Simone Weil, Thomas Merton and J. Krishnamurti: three twentieth-century voices on attention, prayer and freedom.

Beginning. 6 steps

Simone Weil

Author
Simone Weil
A philosopher of the factory floor who found Christ and stayed on the threshold.
Text
Waiting on God
Simone Weil, tr. Emma Craufurd, 1951
Begin with the essay on school studies, then the spiritual autobiography.
Concept
Attention
The thread that runs through her thought, and through these three writers.
Text
Gravity and Grace
Simone Weil, tr. Emma Craufurd, 1952
Her notebooks, to be read slowly, a few entries at a time.

Text
New Seeds of Contemplation
Thomas Merton, 1961
A monk’s meditations on the true self, written for those outside monasteries too.

Text
The First and Last Freedom
J. Krishnamurti, 1954
The teacher who refused to be one: observation without the observer.

Cite this entry

Chicago (bibliography): “Modern Contemplatives.” Reading list. The Library, Unitive Knowledge Society. Last modified November 7, 2026. https://www.unitiveknowledge.org/reading-lists/modern-contemplatives.
Chicago (note): “Modern Contemplatives,” reading list, The Library, Unitive Knowledge Society, last modified November 7, 2026, https://www.unitiveknowledge.org/reading-lists/modern-contemplatives.
MLA: “Modern Contemplatives.” The Library, Unitive Knowledge Society, 7 Nov. 2026, www.unitiveknowledge.org/reading-lists/modern-contemplatives.
BibTeX: @misc{reading-lists-modern-contemplatives, title = {{Modern Contemplatives}}, howpublished = {The Library, Unitive Knowledge Society}, note = {Reading list. Last modified November 7, 2026}, year = {2026}, url = {https://www.unitiveknowledge.org/reading-lists/modern-contemplatives} }