Sunday August 9: Silence Morphs into Presence

Fernand Khnopff, Le Silence de la Neige, 1916

At the mountain of God, Horeb, Elijah came to a cave where he took shelter. Then the Lord said to him, “Go outside and stand on the mountain before the Lord; the Lord will be passing by.” A strong and heavy wind was rending the mountains and crushing rocks before the Lord—but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake—but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was fire—but the Lord was not in the fire. After the fire there was a tiny whispering sound. When he heard this, Elijah hid his face in his cloak and went and stood at the entrance of the cave.
- 1 Kings 19:9a, 11-13a

Jesus went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When it was evening he was there alone. Meanwhile the boat [with the disciples], already a few miles offshore, was being tossed about by the waves, for the wind was against it. During the fourth watch of the night, he came toward them walking on the sea.
- Matthew 14:23-25

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Echoing the teaching of St. John of the Cross, Thomas Keating often said, “Silence is God’s first language. All else is a poor translation.” But silence is counter-cultural and intimidating for many – an acquired taste. How many of us who have attended multi-day Centering Prayer retreats have had family and friends look at us wide-eyed in disbelief and even dismay? Like Elijah, awakening to the presence of silence is a process of attunement of our whole being – mind, heart, body. Our contemplative practices support and encourage this attunement.

Toward the end of her book The Wisdom Jesus, Cynthia Bourgeault writes, “I’d like to leave you with a wager, and ‘a wager’ is exactly what I mean. A wager is not something that gets rammed down your throat; it’s more that same kind of invitation Jesus issued two thousand years ago when his disciplines said, ‘Master, where do you come from?’ And he said, ‘Come and see.’ The wager is this: Jesus, the living master, is real, alive, intimately and vibrantly enfolding you right now. He is more present, in fact, than even your breath and your heartbeat. But to really know this presence you need to tune in on a different wavelength: to shift from your usual binary operating system to the heart frequency where this Jesus connection broadcasts. Wisdom Christianity is practice-driven. When you do the practices that nurture the heart, you will sense this connection as a living bond. Your being becomes receptive to the higher meaning. …

“In other words, you are the vessel, the instrument that receives the wisdom. As you attune and fine-tune your instrument, you will know. It’s not knowing something more, like a new fact or piece of esoteric information, it’s knowing deeper, knowing with more and more of your being engaged.”

After a time apart, Jesus comes down from the mountain to the winds and storms of everyday life, completely attuned and one with his beloved Source. Jesus walks on water, signifying he is in the world but not of the world, not caught, not drowning in fear, doubt, roles, imagination, cultural influences. He is present to What Is, as embodied Presence. As we deepen in our practice and become more rooted in the Center, God is never “not” – God is in the wind, the earthquake, the fire, and the silence. God is the truth and the reality in which we live and move and breathe and have our being (Acts 17:28).

Meditations

“When we see Jesus as a Way-Shower to the divine in ourselves and others, then Jesus’ own contemplative practice actually becomes front and center. The synoptic gospel writers were clearly purposeful in again and again and again showing Jesus’ intentional and consistent effort to be with God, to rest in God, to intentionally be in the formative presence of God as an inner-life practice that apparently nourished and equipped him to meet the call and demands of his outer life. …

“There is a definite rhythm to his practice as Jesus moves from time apart with God back into active ministry. Watch for it: Time with God, then action. Time with God, then action. …

“The gospel writers clearly point to a distinct and continuous pattern: Jesus engaged in his contemplative, rhythmic practice of pausing, seeking out, and being receptive to the power of spending time in silence and solitude with God. And then in his active, lived experience, Jesus had the ability to respond to demanding and confrontational situations, not with reflexive fight/flight overreactions, but with intentional statements and actions of deep listening, compassion, and insight, apparently grounded in the presence and grace of God.”
- Caroline Oakes, Practice the Pause: Jesus’ Contemplative Practice, New Brain Science, and What It Means to be Fully Human

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“The world desperately needs people free of cultural allusions and who are undertaking a dedicated exploration of true reality. Not just to know the material nature of things, but also to know the very Source of everything that exists.

“An unfolding contemplative practice eventually becomes total receptivity.

“In that receptivity, one is aware of a silence that is becoming an irresistible attraction. Silence leads to stillness, stillness leads to surrender. … Interior silence gradually opens to an inner spaciousness that is alive. In this context, if we speak of emptiness, we are not speaking of just emptiness, but of emptiness that is beginning to be filled with a Presence.

• Prayerfully re-read these passages again in the manner of Lectio Divina, reading them aloud to engage more of your senses and feel the vibrations in your body. Gaze at the image. What do you receive for your journey now?

• At the end of day, prayerfully consider when you have moved effortlessly from Presence into action. Or when you wish you had. Listen to Spirit’s response to your prayer.

• On the practice of retreats: Consider planning a time apart on a silent retreat, either on your own at home, online, or by attending a hosted retreat somewhere. In this Q&A, Fr. Carl Arico beautifully describes the benefits of multi-day retreats. You can find many retreat options here on the Contemplative Outreach online calendar. Even a simple half-day retreat at home can provide a restful reset and deepened relationship with the Divine. Here is a simple schedule you could try for a morning, which could be easily expanded for a whole day:

  • Plan ahead by notifying family and friends you will be taking some time apart on retreat, as well as having food on hand for simple meals.

  • After rising, light a candle and say a prayer as a symbol of entering your retreat.

  • Bring your body into your prayer time through simple stretching, yoga, walking, tai chi, sacred gestures, etc.

  • Engage in two 30-minute periods of Centering Prayer, with a walking meditation in-between.

  • Breakfast in silence, or perhaps with sacred music.

  • A time of Lectio Divina with scripture, poetry, an excerpt from a Word of the Week reflection, etc.

  • A time in nature, just being.

  • A time of spiritual enrichment -- reading or watching one of the many videos offered on the Contemplative Outreach YouTube channel (pick the video in advance of your retreat so you don’t have to be spending too much time online).

  • Engage in two 30-minute periods of Centering Prayer, with a walking meditation in-between.

  • Lunch in silence, or with sacred music.

  • Close your retreat time with a prayer and a ritual blowing out of your candle.

  • Re-enter your life with an active prayer sentence and the Welcoming Prayer as a way of continuing your prayer in daily life.

• You may listen to the audio recording of today’s reflection here (about 18 minutes long).

• Please share your reflections and comments below. Post prayer requests here. By clicking on the Subscribe link, you can receive email notifications when someone posts a prayer request.
  

There are three live Word of the Week prayer groups meeting weekly to support your journey. Each prayer group has a slightly different reflection excerpt, therefore some participants attend more than one. You can use this time zone converter to assist in calculating the prayer groups in your local time.

• Tuesday, 9:00-10:00 AM Eastern (New York) Time (UTC/GMT offset -5 hours)

• Wednesday, 6:00-7:00 PM Eastern (New York) Time (UTC/GMT offset -5 hours)

For these two groups, use this link to join OR click-on “join meeting,” and enter meeting ID 445 909 4698. When prompted for a passcode, use COL.

• Thursday, 8:00-9:00 AM Eastern (New York) Time (UTC/GMT offset -5 hours). This groups meets on Meditation Chapel in the Wisdom Chapel. Use this link to join the group. Be sure to register with Meditation Chapel here if you are not already.

Additional opportunities to support your silent prayer practice and spiritual journey are offered in The Meditation Chapel, a Zoom-enabled, worldwide meditation community. All groups are free and open to all. Read more about groups on The Meditation Chapel here.