Retreating

Tomorrow I'm leaving for a three-day, two-night retreat with my spiritual direction group. The five of us will be in a place in Maine. Half of the retreat will be spent in "the great silence," meaning that we do not speak. The group will be deprived of my usual witty remarks...bless them for their sacrifices.

The only other place where I have done a silent retreat has been the Holy Cross retreat center along the Hudson River in New York state. The first time I heard of this about ten years ago, it struck me as bizarre. But once I got used to it, it became PDC (pretty damn cool). The silence forced me to discover that my reflex is to FILL the silence - with conversation, with music, with TV, whatever. I don't take enough time to appreciate those quiet moments, those chances to let my brain rest from auditory stimuli.

Walter Lippmann once said, "Many a time I have wanted to stop talking and find out what I really believe." Taking Lippmann a step further, a quiet surrounding can open the door to insight; sometimes ideas and revelations can bubble to the surface of our consciousness if we allow them. And taking yet another step, perhaps quieting ourselves makes room for the small still voice of God.

The next time you find yourself in quiet, notice if you try to fill that absence of sound. For a little while, try to sit with that silence, viewing it not as the absence of sound but the PRESENCE of something else. In the words of the Psalmist: "Be still, and know that I am God." (Psalm 46:10)