The Sound of Silence – Making Lent Personal

Friends,

Sadly, I begin this Lenten Reflection as I did at this time last year. And I quote,

“By now we have all been overly exposed to the headlines, tweets, Facebook and Instagram posts, blog posts, and so much more. Regardless of our political or spiritual preferences and opinions, I would guess that you are feeling much the same way as I am....Exhausted.”

Just as it seemed we could not become more fragmented…..we have.

So, what shall we do this Lenten Season? Pray, Fast, Give Alms, Love our neighbor as ourselves? All of these deserve our attention, but I would suggest we consider….

The Sound of Silence

In keeping with our Lenten Theme of Making It Personal, I want to share how my most valued spiritual practice, Silence, might help one navigate their Lenten Journey and beyond.

We can’t avoid it. The noise we live with these days is deafening. When asked how we should pray, Jesus instructs us to go to our room and shut the door and pray to God in secret (Matthew 6:6). Jesus is not specifically speaking of Silence, but I suggest that this is one way to quiet the noise that constantly bombards our minds…and hearts.

In an article for Sojourners Magazine, “Finding God in the Depths of Silence”, Fr. Richard Rohr writes, “Real Interior Silence, not just the absence of noise, is a foundational spiritual discipline”. So why are we so resistant to enter into it?

One practice to cultivate silence is Centering Prayer but is surely not the only way. In Centering Prayer, we choose a Sacred Word like “Love” or “Jesus” and we use this word to come back to “no thought” and silence during our “sit” usually lasting 20 minutes.

I know what you are thinking…I can’t sit for 3 minutes in silence without thoughts! That’s okay. Each time a thought enters our mind we use our Sacred Word to bring us back to silence. Eventually we come to trust that God is working within us, without words and that the result of this time in silence will be the fruits of our external actions.

Silence is always an act of trust and faith. It is both humble and humbling. It is a path to our True Self and to that Divine Image of Christ within us.

So, this Lenten Season join me in setting aside some time each day to rendezvous with God in Silence.

In It With You,

Tom