Be Still and Know that I am God
"Be still and know that I am God." These words from Psalm 46 speak to our hearts in these days. "I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth." This powerful prayer is so very appropriate for our times. We are reminded that "God is our refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble." So many people around us are overcome with fear and anxiety in these days. Our isolation and quarantine have given us so much time that normally our lives do not provide us. Indeed there blessings in all of this. I have heard from many parents who are celebrating this unexpected gift - time to spend time with their children and families. What a gift to be able to pray together, to talk and to play together. We may never have this opportunity again so use it well. I know that the tendency for many is to fill the silence with noise. Watch television, play games, use the internet. These can be very good ways of strengthening the bonds of family life. But there is also another opportunity for your family. Make time for silence. Be still and know that I am God. Perhaps in these days we are invited to make time to hear more clearly the voice of God.
St. Benedict put a high value on silence and encouraged his community to make time for silence each day so that God's heart could speak to our heart. Silence is not about emptiness or isolation, which in fact are things that this world might convey to us. For Christians, silence is all about presence. It is an encounter with Jesus. There is an icon in Rome of Mary under the title of "Our Lady of Silence," an image of Mary with her index finger poised gently in front of her closed lips. It is supposedly a favorite image of our Holy Father, Pope Francis. There is an importance given in Christian faith to holy and humble silence. We think of the wise saying that one should think before they speak. Perhaps in these days we are being invited to carve out more easily a moment in our day to allow for quiet and inner peace to better perceive and embrace God's presence. There is a legend in the early Church of a young girl named Sofia, appropriately named for wisdom, who told her mother, "If our Lady asks us "to be quiet , it is because her Son has something important to tell us."
We live in noisy, busy world. There is so little time for silence. Sometimes for us the silence can be deafening or uncomfortable. But we must see silence as golden. Take time to quiet our hearts and souls. God can speak to a quiet heart. I am reminded of the wisdom of Saint Basil the Great: "Quiet is the first step in our sanctification; the tongue purified from the gossip of the world; the eyes unexcited by fair color or comely shape; the ear not relaxing the tone of the mind by voluptous songs, nor by special mischief." As Diodicus, one of the earliest Church fathers said, "A properly kept silence is a beautiful thing. It is nothing less than the father of very wise thoughts."
Don't be afraid to enter the silence. Make time in these days for quiet, for prayer, for listening to the voice of the God who loves you and desires nothing less than your eternal salvation. Read the Scriptures; reflect quietly; set aside a time each day to quietly reflect on the grandeur and majesty of God. He will be present to you. He will bring you consolation and strength. He will speak to your heart the words that you need to hear. That is a promise you can count on.
St. Benedict put a high value on silence and encouraged his community to make time for silence each day so that God's heart could speak to our heart. Silence is not about emptiness or isolation, which in fact are things that this world might convey to us. For Christians, silence is all about presence. It is an encounter with Jesus. There is an icon in Rome of Mary under the title of "Our Lady of Silence," an image of Mary with her index finger poised gently in front of her closed lips. It is supposedly a favorite image of our Holy Father, Pope Francis. There is an importance given in Christian faith to holy and humble silence. We think of the wise saying that one should think before they speak. Perhaps in these days we are being invited to carve out more easily a moment in our day to allow for quiet and inner peace to better perceive and embrace God's presence. There is a legend in the early Church of a young girl named Sofia, appropriately named for wisdom, who told her mother, "If our Lady asks us "to be quiet , it is because her Son has something important to tell us."
We live in noisy, busy world. There is so little time for silence. Sometimes for us the silence can be deafening or uncomfortable. But we must see silence as golden. Take time to quiet our hearts and souls. God can speak to a quiet heart. I am reminded of the wisdom of Saint Basil the Great: "Quiet is the first step in our sanctification; the tongue purified from the gossip of the world; the eyes unexcited by fair color or comely shape; the ear not relaxing the tone of the mind by voluptous songs, nor by special mischief." As Diodicus, one of the earliest Church fathers said, "A properly kept silence is a beautiful thing. It is nothing less than the father of very wise thoughts."
Don't be afraid to enter the silence. Make time in these days for quiet, for prayer, for listening to the voice of the God who loves you and desires nothing less than your eternal salvation. Read the Scriptures; reflect quietly; set aside a time each day to quietly reflect on the grandeur and majesty of God. He will be present to you. He will bring you consolation and strength. He will speak to your heart the words that you need to hear. That is a promise you can count on.
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