Tag: silence
Silencio: The Beginning of Prayer
Recently, we saw a situation whereby a family member made an observation that was unfair and uninformed. The temptation: confront. And sometimes, we have to correct a situation, to speak up. Yes. But when praying about a course of action, the word, “Silencio” came flying, surprisingly, into our thoughts. Was this a “word of knowledge”… Read More ›
Silence and Listening
Some brothers were coming from Scetis to see Abba Antony. When they were getting into a boat to go there, they found an old man who also wanted to cross. The brothers did not know him. They sat in the boat, occupied by turns with the words of the Fathers, Scripture and their manual work…. Read More ›
A Still Small Voice
What is in a whisper? When someone whispers, we quiet down, sharpen our ears and pay attention. A whisper conveys often the most important information–whether intimate words of love or secret words that tell of hidden matters. Whispers are usually more significant than shouts, but they also require more of us. If we fail to pay… Read More ›
Prudence in Speech
The tongue should be prudently restrained, but not completely tied up. It is written: Whoever is wise will keep silence until the right moment. In other words, when it is seen that speech would be opportune the censorship of silence is relaxed, and an effort made to speak some appropriate word. Elsewhere it is written:… Read More ›
How does one recognize God’s call?
How does one recognize God’s call? Well, the secret of the vocation lies in the capacity for and joy of distinguishing, listening to, and obeying his voice. But to do this it is necessary to accustom our hearts to recognizing the Lord and to having an awareness of him as a Person who is close… Read More ›
Jesus Demands Solitude
Christ the Lord is a spirit before your face, and he demands solitude of the spirit more than of the body, although physical withdrawal can be of benefit when the opportunity offers, especially in time of prayer. To do this is to follow the advice and example of the bridegroom, shut the door and then… Read More ›
Silence guards one’s relationship with God
(Vatican Radio) Only silence guards the mystery of the journey that a person walks with God, said Pope Francis in his homily at Mass on Friday morning at the Casa Santa Marta. May the Lord, the Pope added, give us “the grace to love the silence”, which needs to be guarded from all publicity. In… Read More ›
Silence and the Word
Stillness is intimately related to speech and the word. The word is a thing of mystery, so volatile that it vanishes almost on the lip, yet so powerful that it decides fates and determines the meaning of existence. A frail structure shaped by fleeting sound, it yet contains the eternal: truth. Words come from within,… Read More ›
The appointment
No matter what we are doing, or where we are at, there is an element of inner waiting often not averted to, as if something is moving towards us inexorably. When young it was hardly noticed or thought about, though it would be forced upon consciousness when someone’s time had come, their number called and… Read More ›
It is the silence of the world that is real
Those who love their own noise are impatient of everything else. They constantly defile the silence of the forests and the mountains and the sea. They bore through silent nature in every direction with their machines, for fear that the calm world might accuse them of their own emptiness. The urgency of their swift movement… Read More ›