How does silence sound to you?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Lee1
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
L

Lee1

Guest
St Benedict; Only speak when you are spoken to, for Scripture says, “When words are many, transgression is not lacking” (Prov 10: 19).

Silence is often used in monasteries and convents, are there many uses for silence in your opinion?
 
Many, yes…Silence is when you need time to yourself to think about things going on in your life. Silence when you watch your children playing, studying, just being there…Silence when your walking through a park or the woods and watching the creatures and trees that inhabit that area… Silence when you see your mother looking at you the same way she looked at you when you were a child…Silence when you walk into God’s House and thank Him for all that He has given you in this journey of life…Many uses for silence? Oh yes…God bless you, Have a Blessed Christmas.
 
Last edited:
Very interesting topic and question. It’s a lost art that someone can long for. Nice critique from anna.
 
@Lee1

Silence is Gold ! as the old Phrase goes.silence is so important each day with the lord and for ourselves

Psalms 19:1 The heavens are telling the glory of God;and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.2 Day to day pours forth speech,and night to night declares knowledge.3 There is no speech, nor are there words;their voice is not heard;4 yet their voice goes out through all the earth,and their words to the end of the world.11 Moreover by them is your servant warned;in keeping them there is great reward.
12 But who can detect their errors?Clear me from hidden faults.13 Keep back your servant also from the insolent do not let them have dominion over me.Then I shall be blameless,and innocent of great transgression.

14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable to you,
O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
 
Last edited:
As @anna reminds us, isn’t it a wonderful thing to enter the House of God and sit quietly, appreciating the cool stillness and peaceful silence of that sacred oasis in a busy world. Silently absorbing the ambience formed by past prayer and the utterance of holy scripture, slowing our thoughts until they harmonise with the angels above and just basking in the peace that passeth all understanding.

Blessed be God forever.
 
Last edited:
You have 2 eyes. You have 2 ears. You only have one mouth. That ought to be a lesson.
 
Thanks, that’s a great point.

Should we be prepared to listen more? To people? To Our Lord?
 
“Listening and meditation are nourished by silence.” -St. JPii- Two fruitful reasons to practice silence.
 
Silence, to me, is the absence of humans speaking. Other sounds can still be heard in silence.
 
Silence sounds like my heart beat in my ears because I have Tinnitus. Haha.

I’m rarely in total silence. Still, I try to have as much silence in my day as possible. It helps me focus and stay “centered” for lack of a better word.
 
Last edited:
Someone said that we should listen to another and let them know that we are truly listening. This can help them be heard properly and the listener to fully understand what they are saying.

I heard Groucho Marx say that one day he realised that he wasn’t listening to anyone, he was so busy thinking of a smart reply he never really heard them and as a consequence rarely enjoyed a conversation.

so perhaps silence can help us help others better, and please God too.
 
Last edited:
As an extrovert I don’t have a lot of silence throughout my day and when I do I listen to religious podcasts (if you want suggestions just ask!) and Catholic Church hymns lol.

Where I find silence to be very nice is in adoration. I lay prostrate before the Eucharist during adoration sometimes for up to an hour and it’s such a humbling, vulnerable, and peaceful thing.

But I do not enjoy silence as I am trying to go to sleep because I am 20YO and single and start to feel the call to marriage even stronger then and I feel lonely. But then I turn to Christ through Catholic hymns, religious podcasts, and prayer. Jesus reaches each of us when we are at our weakest, when we are in the deepest of pits He is there to toss down the ladder, all we have to do is climb
 
Keep in mind that St Benedict wrote on this in the days when little was known about various personality types.

Many of his day who were drawn to the monsestary, were introverts to begin with.

This doesn’t mean they were contemplatives embracing silence as a spiritual virtue. They just didn’t enjoy engaging in conversation with other people, nor being in their presence. Don’t confuse this with holiness. Jesus was plenty vocal in his time on earth.

Extroverts can also be contemplatives and embrace the silent life as well.

Silence is what takes place within, where useless thoughts are at a minimum, rather than causing the noise we’re endure, more today than ever.

Jim
 
JimR-OCDS said:
Many of his day who were drawn to the monsestary, were introverts to begin with.

This doesn’t mean they were contemplatives embracing silence as a spiritual virtue. They just didn’t enjoy engaging in conversation with other people, nor being in their presence. Don’t confuse this with holiness. Jesus was plenty vocal in his time on earth.
Click to expand...
I was listening to a talk the other day. I wish I could remember which one. The priest giving the talk mentioned that Thomas Merton got himself on the wrong side of some of his fellow monks by pointing out that they weren’t contemplatives but introverts that just didn’t like being around other people. I can imagine this did not win him any popularity contests around the abbey!
 
Fr Rohr, when he gave a retreat to the Trappist at Gethsemane Monastery

Jim
 
It has been suggested that making a time for yourself to sit quietly for a half hour a day may help you become a calmer and more peaceful person.

Along with other ways to reduce the constant noise of the world, car radio off, cell phone off, tv off, we might find some wonderful peace in quiet reflection even in our own homes. Or perhaps in a safe but peaceful place we know outside in the greenery of nature somewhere. Maybe there we could rest in the company of Jesus for a while, silently.

Our Lord said “Come with me by yourself to a quiet place” (cf. Mk 6: 31).
 
Last edited:
I enjoy silence but then I have some medical issues so it is easier for me…however… it is seldom present in my world as I live in a small city, though on the outskirts…so maybe that’s why I love it so much 😃 . The closest I get is the sea when I can get there or the church which is pretty often a sort of silence.

I do have even greater reverence for the inner silence, which fortunately is more attainable and completely unexplainable.
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top