Silence

After reading a biography of Fred Rogers, I just started reading The Simple Faith of Mister Rogers, by Amy Hollingsworth. The first chapter got me thinking about silence. In an interview with Fred Rogers he said,

“I think, for me, I need to be myself... And so, for me, being quiet and slow is being myself, and that is my gift... It seems to me, though, that our world needs more time to wonder and to reflect about what is inside, and if we take time we can often go much deeper as far as our spiritual life is concerned than we can if there’s constant distraction. And often television gives such constant distraction—noise and fast-paced things—which doesn’t allow us to take time to explore the deeper levels of who we are—and who we can become.”

Hollingsworth goes on to say:

“Yale psychologists comparing Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood to Sesame Street... discovered that children were better able to follow the stories on Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood than the faster-paced, hip and hip-hopping world of Sesame Street. Another study concluded that Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood led to an increase in ‘tolerance of delay,’ meaning that children in the study who watched the program were more likely to be patient in waiting for materials or for an adult’s attention.”

Now I don’t have a degree in child development (though I do have one in Educational Ministries), but it seems to me that we need to take a step back and look at the world we are creating with our instant gratification and “always on” media. I’d say the vast majority of the Western world is overstimulated, and we are reaping the consequences in our schools and churches and families. Hollingsworth includes this quote from the demon Screwtape to his nephew Wormwood in C. S. Lewis’s The Screwtape Letters, “We will make the whole universe a noise in the end.” I don’t think we are far off from that now.

Conversely, Scripture is replete with references to “be silent,” “be still,” and “wait.”

• “Be angry, and do not sin; ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent” (Psalm 4:4 ESV).
• “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted in the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” (Psalm 46:10).
• “For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from Him” (Psalm 62:5).
• “But the Lord is in His holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before Him” (Habakkuk 2:20).
• “Be silent before the Lord God! For the day of the Lord is near” (Zephaniah 1:7a).

As Christians, most of us would say we want to hear from God, and yet we make little effort to listen. We want our answers just a click away. Even our church services typically have very little space for silence. (I admit that when I’m preparing our sermon audio for the podcast, I typically shorten any pauses that are more than five seconds.) I was reading recently about the regulative principle of worship—that churches should not add anything to worship services that is not specifically permitted in Scripture (https://www.gotquestions.org/regulative-normative-worship.html). I think to some extent it is true that “simpler is better.” I won’t say that it’s necessarily bad for churches to project lyrics and Scriptures, or to use praise bands or accompaniment tracks, but it does concern me when some worship services are indistinguishable from concerts and other performances. Silence is one way of pointing people back to the reason for worship. When all the external noises are stilled, we have fewer distractions from the voice of the Holy Spirit who was given to “teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you” (John 14:26).

In the noise of this world, it can be hard to find silence, and I believe the church is uniquely suited to providing that break from routine. Many families experience no silent moments unless the kids are asleep; however, kids need silence too. I believe the admonition in James to be “quick to hear, slow to speak” ought to be applied to all types of situations, not just potentially controversial conversations.

I remember an exercise during training to be a Resident Assistant in college. We were to go into a dorm room and respond to whatever scenario was presented. It happened that the room I got was a person who was upset about a difficult relationship. I didn’t really know how to respond, so I just listened to her talk. Afterward, the students observing (as well as the actress) said that even though they wanted to jump in and start talking, my silence was probably the best response in that case. How often do we really listen instead of jumping in with answers or reassurances? Job’s friends were at their best before they opened their mouths, and Job too had to learn to put his hand over his mouth.

My challenge for this week (and you’re welcome to join me) is to stop the noise. Take time away from the TV and internet to be still. Find a time and place to stop and listen for the “low whisper” of God’s presence (1 Kings 19:12). And then extend that listening to those around who just need to be heard.

“When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour” (Revelation 8:1).

© 2018 Dawn Rutan. Unless otherwise indicated all images are copyright free from pixabay.com. The opinions stated do not necessarily reflect the views of my church or employer.