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The essays, talks, and letters collected here - joined by a selection of Merton's own photographs of a Shaker village - present a haunting evocation of a lost tradition. In the Shakers' approach to work as a form of worship, in their practice of community, their simplicity and rejection of violence, and their profound witness to the Kingdom of God he found lessons for all Christians. In their prophetic departure from the American myth of progress, efficiency, and individualism, he found a message of enduring value and relevance for our time.