With God in Silence & Solitude

5TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

[ Mark 1: 29-39 ]

   Invaded by noise

1) The world – that we live in – has been invaded by noise.

Noise pollution (or sound pollution) is the creation and propagation of unwanted or disturbing sound(s) that affect the health and wellbeing of human beings and other living organisms.

The noises around are not just plain annoyance but they are harmful to us. Prolonged exposure to noise can result in adverse physical, mental and psychological conditions: including the loss of concentration, reduced learning abilities, mental and psychological stress, anxiety and depression, disrupted sleeping patterns, hypertension, hormonal imbalance, cardiovascular diseases, etc.

2) Our souls too, have been invaded by noise.

In our time, we are so accustomed to noise, crowds and entertainment that we are afraid of silence, solitude and being alone. 

We are always running around like headless chickens – mindless and directionless – always in a rush to do something, go somewhere or meet someone. We just have no time to slow down, to pause, to breathe and to be.

We cannot survive a moment of silence without iTunes, Spotify, WhatsApp, Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, Instagram or Netflix. Even in the Church, we find ourselves fidgeting around when prayerful silence befalls us. Silence, to many of us, can be uncomfortable, disturbing and somewhat daunting.

Yes, our souls have been invaded by noise. It does not just rob us of the peace of Christ within us. It is also harmful to our spiritual wellbeing and the salvation of our souls.

   The power of silence and solitude with God.

The great Mother Teresa of Calcutta has this to say, “We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature – trees, flowers, grass – grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence... We need silence to be able to touch souls.”

Slow down and spend time with God.

Similarly, in the Gospel reading this Sunday, we hear of Jesus going around teaching and preaching, healing the sick, casting out devils and performing miracles. His schedule was so packed that He and His disciples had little time for themselves. Even though His schedule was hectic and everyone was looking for Him, Mark the evangelist notes that ‘long before dawn, Jesus got up and left the house, and went to a lonely place and prayed there’. We can observe that Jesus’ days and His ministry were always punctuated with ‘pauses’ for silence, solitude and prayer.

   Contemplative in action

Ignatian Spirituality calls this ‘Contemplative in Action’. In the busyness of our life, ‘Contemplative in Action’ invites us to STOP, LOOK and GO.

Contemplative in action: STOP, LOOK and GO.

   1) Stop: In the midst of the chaotic and hectic schedule, we are invited to stop a while. No matter how busy our schedule is, we need to spend time with God in silence and solitude. Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI says, “It is in those moments of quiet solitude that God speaks the loudest.”

   2) Look: Look where we are going! Spending quiet time with God daily and reflecting on our daily experiences help us to delve into their deeper meaning – How have I responded to God today? How have I resisted God today? What is God telling me through my experiences?

   3) Go: Jesus returned to His busy schedule, and so must we. Silence, solitude and prayer are not means for escapism. Like sun tanning, the more we are exposed to the sun, the more tanned we become – it is the sun that tans us. When we spend time with the Son, the Son will transform us, slowly but surely. Our silence, solitude and prayer time will refresh, renew, revitalize and reinvigorate us. God will open before us new insights, new horizons, new possibilities and new hopes. With God's grace, we return to our busy schedule, no longer like headless chickens, but with renewed minds and hearts to glorify Him with our lives.

With Jesus as our perfect example, being contemplative in action means that our active life feeds our contemplative life, and our contemplative life nourishes our active life.

Let not the noise of the world drown the voice of the Lord. Let us therefore STOP, LOOK and GO – learning from Jesus how to be, how to see, and how to live.

Let our fervent prayer be:

   “Lord Jesus Christ, teach me to be contemplative in action: to STOP, to LOOK and to GO.”

   [Note: This Gospel reflection was adapted from Porta Fidei, Gospel Reflection, 7 Feb 2021.]