God is found in silence. Supremely in the Eucharist, he is there, quietly awaiting our company, hoping we take some time to sit with him. He loves us, and because he loves us, he waits. We forget him, but day and night he is always thinking of us.

Silence is an inescapable precursor for growth in holiness, for encountering the good God who beckons us to recognize his presence. When Elijah met God at Mount Horeb “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; and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence” (1 Kings 19:11–12). We can search for God in the wrong things. While God’s power can be readily associated with strong winds, breaking rocks, earthquakes, or fires, the Lord was not in any of those phenomena. The prophet reminds us that God is often hidden in the most unlikely of places, especially in the sound of sheer silence.

Even Dominican life, while ordered to preaching, cannot be lived in its fullness apart from times of silence. This reality is encapsulated in an esteemed adage of the Order—silentium est pater praedicatorum, silence is the father of preachers. Just as fathers beget sons, silence begets preachers. Quiet contemplation is where the Dominican finds God in order to better hear his voice for the sake of preaching his Kingdom.

Listening to God is inseparable from another characteristic of Dominican life, which also has a wider meaning, applicable to all Christians: listening to God is interwoven with obedience. While obedience is often sadly misunderstood by the wider culture, it cannot be excised from an authentic Christian life. Obedience is not simply following orders; it is the listening to and aligning of one’s heart to another’s. The word obey is derived from the Latin obaudire, which combines ob, an intensifier, and audire, meaning “listen, hear.” From its simple etymology, we can see that obedience in its essence is the very act of listening intently to God. But this listening cannot begin without the initial quality of silence. Here we understand the integral link between silence, obedience, and knowing God. Silence gives birth to the indispensable environment for preparing the soul to obediently hear the voice of God, and in hearing his voice we come to know God, and in coming to know God we deepen our trust in his love.

One modern saint who perceived the necessity of silence is the joyful Teresa of Calcutta. Saint Teresa understood the importance of placing silence at the beginning of the Christian life, as written in her treasured reflection:

The fruit of silence is prayer,
the fruit of prayer is faith,
the fruit of faith is love,
the fruit of love is service,
the fruit of service is peace.

Prayer, faith, love, service, and peace are all rooted in and begin with silence. Saint Teresa gave much of her life to silence before the good God, maintaining her daily Holy Hour in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament. Similarly, Venerable Fulton Sheen credited his daily Hour of Eucharistic adoration to preserving his vocation, describing his time with Jesus, “Sitting before the Presence is like a body exposing itself before the sun to absorb its rays. Silence in the Hour is a tête-à-tête with the Lord. In those moments, one does not so much pour out written prayers, but listening takes its place.”

While we are not all called to carry out a daily Holy Hour, many testify to the transforming power of spending only one hour each week simply sitting in silence before the Real Presence of Jesus in Eucharistic adoration. Our efficiency-focused culture has trouble understanding the beauty and joys of adoration, thinking of it as just a waste of time, but we know differently. Time given to God is never wasted. When we go to him, he strengthens our souls, comforts our afflictions, and brings his peace to our souls. In receiving his grace, we are better able to obey lovingly the one who loves us infinitely. If we return to the quiet presence of the good God, we will know the truth of Mother Teresa’s words, “Souls of prayer are souls of great silence.”

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Photo by Fr. Lawrence Lew, O.P. (used with permission)