Noise vs. Silence
One
Throughout salvation history, the devil uses noise to distract the people of God from listening to God’s voice, as well as to cause fear and panic. We know from 1 Kings 19 that God wishes to reveal himself to His prophets in a “still, small voice,” gentle, and not through a loud clamor. (1 Kings 19: 12.) Through the prophet Elijah, He teaches us that to hear His voice we must learn how to tune out the world. As we learn to hear Him, we discover His peace. Somehow, I have been put on a couple of news-site outlets that send me headlines via email. I notice that if I scan these headlines, I immediately lose my peace. I feel eager, angry, fearful, etc. But when I open up the Sacred Scriptures or a good spiritual book and read that instead, I am calmed, comforted, and know that God is the one in control. God’s Word restores my perspective. This is why it is so important for us make a real effort—not a flabby one—to tune out the world and spend more time in silence, more time focusing on God’s word. We cannot forget the things of this world are passing, even things that seem so important, things like politics, investments, sports, entertainment, etc. I am not saying that these things deserve no time, its rather that they don’t deserve the amount of time most of us give them. A young St. Ignatius of Loyola, while recovering from an injury, noticed that what he read affected him in different ways: worldly literature excited him but left him weary and uneasy. Spiritual literature left him with a sense of peace so deep and pleasing and lasting, he decided to commit his life to it. It was this discovery that prompted him to write his famous work on discerning spirits. At the time, however, he was very worldly and steeped in sin. Thus, God’s peace is not for the spiritual athlete who puts us all to shame. Rather, it is for everyone—even great sinners—to discover and receive and enjoy. A life of spiritual reading and resting in silence is a life of Christ’s peace.
Two
In the Old Testament, when Jerusalem is surrounded by the Assyrians, King Sennacherib of Assyria sent one of his generals to taunt, insult, and threaten the Jewish King Hezekiah. He uses very effective tactics: in addition to mocking God with his insults which gives a false sense of his power and God’s weakness, he reveals that he knows the secret, strategic plans of Judah. (2 Kings 18:13-ff.) Hezekiah is overcome with fear as he knows the Assyrians are more powerful. At this point, God sends Isaiah the prophet with this odd advice, “By waiting and by calm, you shall be saved. In quietness and trust shall be your strength…blessed are those who wait for Him.” (Is 30: 15; 18b.) The people of Jerusalem needed only to pray in silence and wait in peace, and the Lord defended them. That night the Assyrians were miraculously defeated by the power of God, and when the humiliated Sennacherib returned to Nineveh, his sons murdered him. Silence, prayer, and waiting trustfully on the Lord proved more potent than trust in action, information, and political power. And you, in whom do you place your trust?
Three
Noise of the modern world stifles the voice of God in one’s soul, in one’s conscience. The Venerable Archbishop Fulton Sheen commented that the modern world even loves noise because, “the footsteps of the hound of heaven which can be heard in silence cannot be heard in the din of excitement.” He points out that noise drowns the voice of God and stupefies the conscience, and this prevents us from facing ourselves, our faults, our sins, and keeps us distracted and distanced from God. If we do not spend time in silence, we will not know ourselves. In fact, we will know others better than ourselves and become blind to our own faults. Perhaps this is why the world is so full of judgment of others, especially those with whom we do not agree. We forget the foreboding words of the Lord, “by the judge and measure you judge, so shall you be judged!” (Mt 7:2.) In his book The Power of Silence, Cardinal Sarah reminds us, ““Sounds and emotions detach us from ourselves, whereas silence always forces man to reflect upon his own life.” I must not fear to sit alone in silence. I must seek stillness and ask God to reveal me to myself. To discover not just my predominant faults, but more so, to experience God’s infinite mercy. It is in silence that God heals us.
Four
Cardinal Sarah goes on, “From morning to evening, from evening to morning, silence no longer has any place at all; the noise tries to prevent God himself from speaking. In this hell of noise, man disintegrates and is lost; he is broken up into countless worries, fantasies, and fears. In order to get out of these depressing tunnels, he desperately awaits noise so that it will bring him a few consolations. Noise is a deceptive, addictive, and false tranquilizer. The tragedy of our world is never better summed up than in the fury of senseless noise that stubbornly hates silence. This age detests the things that silence brings us to: encounter, wonder, and kneeling before God. Even in the schools, silence has disappeared. And yet how can anyone study in the midst of noise? How can you read in noise? How can you train your intellect in noise? How can you structure your thought and the contours of your interior being in noise? How can you be open to the mystery of God, to spiritual values, and to our human greatness in continual turmoil? Contemplative silence is a fragile little flame in the middle of a raging ocean. The fire of silence is weak because it is bothersome to a busy world.” (The Power of Silence, pp. 56-57.)
Five
When I was involved in campus ministry, I remember hearing several students comment on why they didn’t pray; about their great fear to pray. As one student told me, “I hate to be alone. I’m afraid what I will miss. I’m afraid of what I’ll find.” To this fear, I’ll close with this prayer from St. Theresa of Calcutta, “In the silence of the heart, God speaks. If you face God in silence and prayer, God will speak to you. Souls of prayer are souls of great silence.” Lord, cast away my fears of what I’ll find, of what I won’t find. Instead, let me discover You, a God who is generous, a God who is merciful, a God who IS love! Let me discover that when I’m silent I’m not alone, but free!