You hide Yourself in Your own glory, O God. The sand-grain and the dewdrop are more proudly apparent than You are.
The world unabashed calls all things his own that are Yours—yet it is never brought to shame.
You make room for us while standing aside in silence; wherefore, love lights her own lamp to seek You and comes to Your worship unbidden.
*Rabindranath Tagore. Heart of God: Prayers of Rabindranath Tagore.
Theophilus of Holy Memory, Bishop of Alexandria, traveled to Scetis. After gathering, the brothers told Abba Pambo, "Say a word or two to the bishop, so his soul may be edified here." The aged abba said, "If my silence does not edify him, there is no hope my words will edify him."
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I was trained at a major hospital in clinical chaplaincy and, thankfully, under the guidance of a supervisor who understood the power and grace of Silence in serving patients and their families. One of our weekly assignments included times in the Intensive Care Unit and Emergency Room doing nothing but sitting silently.
Now, why would that be important? What I learned there and later in hospice work was when with a patient, what I did not say was more important than what I did say. Such does not sound practical, does it? I hope not.
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The person who cannot listen to the Word of Life, speechless and unseen and heard only with the Heart in reverent Quiet, will hear little of It through the most reverent of words, even words about the Word. There is a depth to the Word ~ an innate, universal Wisdom (so free from the claim of any movement, be it religious, political, spiritual, or any other) resonating within and from the Heart, before and beyond inside or outside.
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We vastly overrate the efficacy of words; we vastly underestimate the power of Silence. The Mystery-of-Life does not speak directly to anyone through words, images, or thoughts. No. Does Spirit have a mouth? Then, why do we so adore religious or spiritual words in contrast to Silence, which we largely neglect, and talk so much on such matters ~ as though we know so much ~ and do not balance words spoken with the Heart listening in the Haven of Quietude?
The listening may often be, indeed usually is, only an act of being open to and with Presence. This opening means we are not merely in Quietude to get a message, as though we are an object waiting to hear from the Subject, the Other. We need to learn to listen with the Heart and familiarize ourselves with the Word that often says nothing, but Its speech is the communication of Itself in ever-more subtle ways.
This communication arises from Union, often sensed as an ineffable, sometimes sharply mystifying, Communion. Hence, in Tagore's words, this silent One standing aside draws us into worship "unbidden." We are bidden to worship by that we know not.
Silence habituates one to the subtle Presence, while It unfolds Itself at more subtle expressions, as one is more receptive to receive. Spirit converts us, so we can receive more of Grace at an increasingly in-depth unveiling of Life.
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Possibly, the only hope to keep ourselves out of captivity to the prevalent worded nonsense, which bombards us from all directions, even from persons who claim to have a word from "God," is the intentional practice of Silence. Could it be a reason many in organized religions are not urged to practice Silence is that most of the leaders do not listen to the wordless Word but listen to words, even words in a holy book, supposedly of or about the unspoken Word, and, then, parrot those words onward to others.
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Years ago, I stood listening to a chaplain colleague giving a talk on spirituality. The speech was crafted well and enthusiastically given. As a former teacher of homiletics ~ the art of preaching ~, I would, on presentation alone, give her a near-perfect score. What I noticed was, however, I sensed nothing, like a hollowness. I saw an excellent performance. I was not sensing Presence, or Innate Living Wisdom.
As I reflect on my life, I see that I have focused too much on performance at times when speaking. Thankfully, I learned what no one informed me of in all my education ~ Always, always, when we share about Life, we ourselves are the principal means of the communication of Life by Life, not what we say or how well we say it. The Word is Self-Communicating Presence; no one can give the Word; the Word gives Itself.
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Was Abba Pambo saying something we need to remind ourselves of often, even though little about us encourages us to do so? That is the power of Silence to edify both ourselves and others. As wrote a wise Jewish sage, "There is... a time to speak and a time to be silent" (Ecclesiastes 3.1, 7; AV).
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*(C) Brian K. Wilcox, 2024. Permission is given to use photographs and writings with credit given to the copyright owner.
*Brian's book is An Ache for Union: Poems on Oneness with God through Love. The book is a collection of poems Brian wrote based on wisdom traditions, predominantly Christian, Buddhist, and Sufi, with extensive notes on the poetry's teachings and imagery.
