The Book is Here
My grandfather used to say “don’t break the silence unless you can improve upon it.” And Will Rogers said, “Never miss a chance to shut up.” (I could probably use that advice!)
But truthfully, silence can be positive or negative.
Someone can “silence” us. They can force us to stay quiet. We can also feel silenced—by a bully or someone with greater power.
That kind of silence is painful. That kind of silence deserves rebuke.
But there is a different kind of silence. A silence we choose. A silence where we check in with ourselves.
That is the silence evoked by Thich Naht Hanh is in his beautiful book Silence. That is the silence we experience in prayer or meditation—where we close our eyes and let our thoughts and catch up with us.
Silence can be one of our most effective spiritual and psychological tools, because silence has a mysterious power. Sometimes silence lets us hear God.
Mother Teresa was asked what she says when she prays. “I don’t say anything,” she replied. “I just listen.”
"And when you listen,” asked the interviewer, “what does God say?”
“He doesn’t say anything,” she relied. “He just listens.”
The bewildered journalist looked at her. Then she added, “And if you don’t understand that, I can’t explain it to you.”
Do You Take Time for Silence?
Rabbi Evan Moffic
Congregation Solel
1301 Clavey Road
Highland Park, Illinois 60035, United States
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