Encountering Silence

What is the relationship between silence and rhythm?

Silence as the offbeat: there is no rhythm without the silence. — Cassidy Hall

What are the ways that silence can create rhythm? How can silence enhance the notes of our day; how does silence strain out the noise in our life and directs the way we approach the everyday rhythms of our lives?

I always feel that poetry is like wild language, that it's language that actually hears the birds, and the wind, and the rippling of the pond, and then is just able to imitate that in human speech... poetry doesn't care if you notice the words, right? The poet is saying, the words are saying, "If you saw what I saw in my head, if my words were able to give you the vision, then we're there!" — Kevin Johnson

Our conversation dances between the beat of the heart and the cadence of the lungs; from there we reflect on poets and artists and how both rhythm and silence shape their work; the relationship between silence, rhythm, breath, and prayer; how sometimes the rhythm "falls out" because of self-consciousness (as opposed to the "deeper silence" where we simply relax into a silence akin to forgetting or selfless-consciousness), and how even the difficult times and moments of life might be indicative of simply a bigger rhythm at play.

In between every beat of the heart is a moment of silence. — Carl McColman

And of course, we talk about poetry, and the social ramifications of silence (i.e., how silence subverts our culture's aggressive materialism) —and much more!

Some of the resources and authors we mention in this episode:

Richard Rohr, The Naked Now: Learning to See as the Mystics See

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Flow

Maggie Ross, Silence Vol. 2

The Dalai Lama, Stages of Meditation

Meister Eckhart, Selected Writings

Pema Chödrön, Pure Meditation (the Audio Collection)

Mary Oliver, A Poetry Handbook

Carl McColman, Spirituality

Abbie Hoffman, Steal This Book

Guillermo del Toro (dir.), The Shape of Water

George Lucas (dir), Star Wars

Carl McColman, Befriending Silence

Thomas Merton, The Asian Journal

Thomas Merton, No Man is an Island

Patrick Shen (dir.), In Pursuit of Silence

John Cage, Silence

Jessica Mesman Griffith & Amy Andrews, Love and Salt

Monica Furlong, Contemplating Now

For the podcast featuring our friend and co-conspirator Jessica Mesman Griffith, click here: Things Not Seen Podcast #1806: The Communion of Haints 

Episode 14: Silence and Rhythm

Hosted by: Kevin Johnson

With: Cassidy Hall and Carl McColman

Date Recorded: March 5, 2018

Cassidy, Kevin and Carl ponder the question of how silence impacts and informs the cadences of life.

Fr. James Martin, SJ is the author of numerous books as well as an editor at America magazine. A Jesuit priest, Fr. James has emerged as one of the leading voices for Ignatian spirituality — and Catholicism in general — for our time. He has also become a lightning rod for some segments of the Catholic world — his gentle call for greater dialogue between the Catholic Church and LGBT Catholics has led to social media attacks along with calls for boycotts and cancellations of Fr. Martin's speaking engagements. Yet he himself remains undeterred, seeking to be a voice for hope and reconciliation in our troubled world.

"We've developed this culture of noise and distraction so much, that when people are alone with their thoughts or alone with silence, it's frightening." — James Martin, SJ

The Encountering Silence team met Fr. James Martin when he presided at a Mass for a Pax Romana meeting in New York last December that the three of us attended. Several weeks later the four of us gathered via Skype for a rich conversation exploring  the connections between silence, Ignatian spirituality, prayer, spiritual direction, meditation, interspirituality and interfaith dialogue, and how writing (and revising) his book Building a Bridge has made a difference in his own ministry. Fr. James also muses on the essential connections between silence, relationship, and God — and how silence and prayer can help us to overcome fear of "the other."

Our phones — a friend of mine the other day called them "weapons of mass distraction." — James Martin, SJ

Incidentally, when we recorded this episode, the release date for the paperback edition of Building a Bridge was scheduled for March 13, 2018. Subsequently, the publisher moved up the release date one week — so the book is available now.

God enjoyed silence when God was on the earth with us.

— Fr. James Martin, SJ

The verse from Ecclesiastes that Carl mentions is Ecclesiastes 3:11: "God has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart..." (New International Version)

In terms of prayer and silence, I participate in it ultimately to be in a deeper relationship with God... I meet God in silence, and God speaks to me in silence... God always speaks to me in silence, I just need to be paying attention. — Fr. James Martin, SJ

Some of the resources and authors we mention in this episode:

James Martin, Jesus: A Pilgrimage

James Martin, The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything

James Martin, Building a Bridge (revised/expanded edition)

Ignatius of Loyola, Personal Writings

Martin Scorses (Dir.), Silence

James Martin, Becoming Who You Are

Bernard of Clairvaux, The Letters

Elizabeth A. Johnson, Quest for the Living God

Martin Buber, I and Thou

Henri Nouwen, Reaching Out

William Johnston, The Still Point

Thomas G. Hand, Always a Pilgrim

Hugo Enomiya-Lassalle, Living in the New Consciousness

Robert Kennedy, Zen Spirit, Christian Spirit

Francis X. Clooney, Comparative Theology: Deep Learning Across Religious Borders

Teresa of Ávila, The Book of My Life

John of the Cross, Collected Works

Thomas Merton, Essential Writings

Bede Griffiths, Essential Writings

Anthony De Mello, Selected Writings

Bobby Karle, Ignatian Yoga

Vatican Council II, Nostra Aetate

Richard Rohr, The Naked Now

Pope Francis, Laudato Si: On Care for Our Common Home

Pope John Paul II, In God's Hands

Lawrence Kohlberg, The Philosophy of Moral Development

Carol Gilligan, In a Different Voice

Maggie Ross, Writing the Icon of the Heart

Julian of Norwich, Showings

Joyce Rupp, Fragments of Your Ancient Name

Irene Zimmerman, Incarnation

New York Times bestselling author Fr. James Martin, SJ looks at silence in the light of Ignatian spirituality.

When we embrace silence as an alternative to conflict, are we just choosing to escape? Or can silence be a refuge, a temporary or even permanent shelter from the challenges of life? How can we tell the difference between silence-as-refuge and silence-as-escape?

Recognizing the ache that we meet, the ache of the whole  world ... that we meet in our silences, right? It reminds us that there's space there for the whole world. — Cassidy Hall

Silence can be "toxic" when we  refuse to speak to someone in the interest of resolving conflict or managing differences; likewise, silence can be toxic if we enter into it as a way of escaping conflict, or avoiding essential conversations or tasks that require our (verbal) attention.

But an alternative to the toxic quality of silence-as-escape is today's topic, silence-as-refuge: the recognition that even the most socially and politically engaged activist needs times of retreat, of quiet, of rejuvenation and reflection.

For me what's important is that the silence circulates even among the words... the word "silence" here is actually pointing to something else: a shift of attention, a refocusing. — Kevin Johnson

Our wide-ranging conversation explores how monasteries can function as "silence refuges," fostering an ability to love from a place of deep interiority; the relationship between silence and "perfection;" the classroom setting as a venue for silence as a pedagogical strategy; the relationship between loneliness and solitude (aloneness); and much more!

When we're taking refuge from something, that thing that we're taking refuge from doesn't just go away. It's learning to be patient with the messiness of life, or the brokenness of life, or the wounding of life. — Carl McColman

Some of the resources and authors we mention in this episode:

Henry David Thoreau, A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers

Desert Mothers and Fathers, Early Christian Wisdom Sayings

Henri Nouwen, Reaching Out

Patrick Shen, dir., In Pursuit of Silence

Maggie Ross, Silence: A User's Guide Volume 2

Pablo Picasso, Living in Art

Helen Lees, Silence in Schools

Carl Jung, The Portable Jung

Evagrius Ponticus, The Praktikos and Chapters on Prayer

Rumi, The Essential Rumi

Saint Benedict, The Rule of Saint Benedict

Silence as a refuge is necessary;

Silence as a refuge is listening;

Silence as a refuge is cleansing;

Silence as a refuge is the poetry of love.

Episode 12: Silence as Refuge

With: Kevin Johnson and Carl McColman

Date Recorded: November 27, 2017

Kevin, Cassidy and Carl reflect on the gifts and the challenges that silence brings to the human need for refuge.

This week marks the first Encountering Silence "Field Recording" in which one member of our team (in this case, Cassidy Hall) records a face-to-face interview with a person whose life is deeply engaged with silence. Today's episode features Cassidy in conversation with a Benedictine monk, Fr. Stephanos Pedrano, OSB.

Father Stephanos is a monk of Prince of Peace Abbey in Oceanside, California. The Encountering Silence team met Fr. Stephanos online, through a small social media group for artists, writers, and others who explore the intersection between art, spirituality, justice, and authenticity. In that context Fr. Stephanos is a voice of calm, deep spirituality, and good humor. Since he lives so close to Cassidy Hall, it seemed natural for her to pay him a visit, and during her time at the monastery, to record the interview which we are now sharing with you as our 11th episode. Even though this is the third episode to feature an interview on the podcast, it is actually the first interview to have been recorded (back in October of last year).

Fr. Stephanos tells his story, from his early yearning for liturgy and community, to discovering intentional silence through prayer, to eventually discerning his call to monastic life — which in turn took him to the threshold of silence. He reflects on how the wisdom of Saint Benedict has shaped the monastic experience of silence, and the relationship between silence and love. He goes on to talk about Mother Teresa — a modern saint who "suffered" the silence of God, whose voice fell into absence as she responded to her vocation to serve the poorest of the poor.

He explores some of the "silent wisdom" of the Rule of Saint Benedict, such as can be found in Benedict's twelve steps of humility — which on the surface seems so counterintuitive to the values of our age, but actually points to treasures such as the spiritual beauty of silencing one's own ego, in response to the love of God. Fr. Stephanos also explores why the word "contemplation" never appears in the Rule of Saint Benedict, and also talks about the heart of lectio divina, the deeply contemplative monastic practice of meditative reading of scripture, and how silence has given him insight into the dynamics of his own personality — and into love.

Monks are men of silence, but they are also men of many words... primarily the Psalms. — Fr. Stephanos Pedranos

Some of the resources and authors mentioned in this episode:

Thomas Merton, Essential Writings

The Liturgy of the Hours

The Rule of Saint Benedict

Mary Oliver, Devotions: The Selected Poems

Mother Teresa, Come Be My Light

Michael Casey, Sacred Reading: the Ancient Art of Lectio Divina

In the picture we see Cassidy and Fr. Stephanos enjoying a beer from the Almanac Beer Company, a California microbrewery.

Episode 10: Silence in the Cloister: A Conversation with Fr. Stephanos Pedrano, OSB

Hosted by: Cassidy Hall

Introduced by: Kevin Johnson

Guest: Fr. Stephanos Pedrano, OSB

Date Recorded: October 25, 2017

Cassidy Hall goes to the monastery to inverview Benedictine monk Fr. Stephanos Pedrano, OSB.

For this episode, we felt drawn to reflect on a couple of "liturgical paradoxes" coming up now and in April: that the Christian holy day of Ash Wednesday corresponds to Valentine's Day; and that Easter Sunday falls on All Fools' Day, April 1.

Valentine's Day originated as a Christian memorial (for Saint Valentine), but in its secularized form it is a day for celebrating romantic love — complete with flowers, a nice dinner out, and of course, plenty of chocolate. But this flies in the face of the meaning and observance of Ash Wednesday — as the first day of the penitential season of Lent, Ash Wednesday is a solemn occasion for reflecting on our mortality ("remember that you are dust"), our sinfulness or woundedness, and — at least in some traditions — is a day for fasting — hardly conducive to indulging in sweets!

Of course, even without the religious overlay, Valentine's Day can be paradoxical even on its own — as a day of sorrow for those who are lonely, or bereaved, or even navigating a relationship where love is absent.

How do we hold these paradoxes together? Could silence be a key to finding a way to honor both the pleasures of love and the invitation to self-forgetfulness?

"Paradox is paradoxical only to the linear, self-conscious mind," says Maggie Ross in her recently published book Silence: A User's Guide, Volume Two: Application. She goes on to consider an alternative to the limitations of the linear mind, which she calls "deep mind." "Deep mind is inclusive, what ancient writers refer to as the place of unity. Its ways of thinking are holistic, even holographic."

“The opposite of a correct statement is a false statement. But the opposite of a profound truth may well be another profound truth.”  — attributed to Niels Bohr

Put another way: perhaps paradox is itself a gift, a reminder that there's more to our minds (and our capacity to know and to understand) than the limitations imposed by language and linear thought. Perhaps when we try to make sense of how to hold a paradox like Valentine's Day falling on Ash Wednesday gently and authentically, we are invited into a place of deeper and higher knowing — and the portal to that place is not logic or language but simply silence.

Some of the resources and authors we mention in this episode:

Jan Richardson, Circle of Grace: A Book of Blessings for the Seasons

Niels Bohr, Niels Bohr: His Life and Work

Nicholas of Cusa, Selected Spiritual Writings

Marvin C. Shaw, The Paradox of Intention

Lao Tzu, Tao te Ching

Parker Palmer, The Courage to Teach

Walt Whitman, "Song of Myself"

Henri Nouwen, Reaching Out

Leonard Cohen, "Anthem"

Pope Francis, The Hope of Lent

T. S. Eliot, "Ash Wednesday"

Carl McColman, The Big Book of Christian Mysticism

Another poem we didn't mention in the podcast, but that deserves a shout out here, is Walter Brueggemann's "Marked by Ashes" (from his book Prayers for a Privileged People). Also check out Thomas Merton's thoughts on paradox in The Sign of Jonas...

Like the prophet Jonas, whom God ordered to go to Nineveh, I found myself with an almost uncontrollable desire to go in the opposite direction. God pointed one way and all my "ideals" pointed in the other. It was when Jonas was traveling as fast as he could away from Nineveh, toward Tharsis, that he was thrown overboard, and swallowed by a whale who took him where God wanted him to go...But I feel that my own life is especially sealed with this great sign, which baptism and monastic profession and priestly ordination have burned into the roots of my being, because like Jonas himself I find myself traveling toward my destiny in the belly of a paradox. — Thomas Merton

Ash Wednesday and Valentine's Day each offer their own doorway into the riches of silence.