Last week’s blog featured a how-to for doing Centering Prayer. This week we will dig deeper into the mystery of silence as an essential way to find God. I know it sounds strange, but God waits for us in the silence.
Thomas Merton, a Trappist Monk, wrote that we are all born with a Divine spark from God. I agree with him. That spark drives us to seek God. We may not understand what that “draw” to God is at first, but we can think of it as a “pull towards something greater than ourselves.” By cultivating that spark, it can grow into a burning flame of love. Attaining that stage of union with God usually occurs with those utterly dedicated to a life of prayer, meditation, and living a monastic kind of life, alone or in community.
Yet, I’ve known many devout people whose spirituality and closeness to God are unmistakable. And, they live in a society with all of its distractions and difficulties. We never fully understand how God works, but many avenues exist for growing our connection with God, and they often involve the “sheer sound of silence.”
While almost none of us will devote our lives to endless prayer unless we are nuns or monks, God still calls us to prayer in whatever ways work best for us. That could involve using prayer beads. In intercessory prayer, we pray for others and the world. In centering prayer, we seek God in the silence.
To better understand God’s power waiting in the silence, let’s briefly look at one of the most important Old Testament prophets, Elijah. Now Elijah is having a terrible time. He called out corruption, idolatry, and blasphemy against God, as the people, and even King Ahab and Queen Jezebel, worshiped Baal. After working a fantastic miracle to show God’s might, Queen Jezebel tells Elijah that he will die the next day.
Elijah heads for the hills, scared for his very life. The mountains provide Elijah a refuge, and there he has a life-changing encounter with God. This passage astonishes me every time I read it. It is staggeringly beautiful and powerful, yet so simple.
So Elijah is holed up in a cave on Mt. Horeb, and God starts a conversation.
God: What are you doing up here, Elijah?
Elijah: Queen Jezebel just threatened me saying that I’d be dead tomorrow, and I took off. She hates me for calling out her and the king for their idolatry. She wants me dead. Did you send an angel to feed me on my journey to this place? I was growing weak with hunger, and the angel fed me and ministered to me. That’s how I got up here.
God: I did. And, I’m sending you to anoint Hazael over Aram, but first, I want you to find me outside of your cave.
11 He said, “Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.” Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; 12 and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. 13 When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. (1 Kings 19:11-13)
Imagine the sound of hearing a mountain crack in two from powerful high winds and the fear of an earthquake. We might expect to be in the midst of God during such mighty events. In Elijah’s time, people believed that thunder, quakes, and high winds proved the divine presence.
But then, after the great winds had split the mountains, and an earthquake shook the ground, there was the “sound of sheer silence.” The Orthodox Jewish Bible translates this as a “quiet, gentle voice.” That says to me that not only is God safe to be around but that we can approach God who is gentle and speaks in sweet sounds.
As you begin or resume your meditation practice, you may not feel like anything is happening. Give it time, and have patience. Over time you will start noticing things. Perhaps you now feel the need for greater quiet. Maybe you find that your patience has increased or that you are more open to different ideas. There are many benefits to centering prayer in addition to these. So, the challenge for you is to find those benefits for yourself. The changes are as unique as we are.
Try experimenting with different forms of prayer to complement your centering prayer. I love to walk a labyrinth periodically. I will write a blog about using a labyrinth in the near future, so stay tuned. I’m an Episcopalian, so I pray from our Book of Common Prayer. I especially like the Compline, the last prayer of the day.
Another form of prayer that involves scripture is called lectio divina. This ancient practice involves four steps:
- Reading a biblical passage (Lectio)
- Meditating on a phrase or word from the text (meditatio)
- Praying (oratio)
- Contemplating, or resting (contemplatio)
Lectio Divina provides another avenue of silent prayer when alone. You can also do this in a group. Participants share the word or phrase, and some discussion occurs if the group desires. The website, Soul Shepherding, has downloadable guides for Lectio Divina. You will also find more info about how to pray using this type of prayer.
