Karen Marie Moning, an American author once remarked: “Words can be twisted into any shape. Promises can be made to lull the heart and seduce the soul. In the final analysis, words mean nothing. They are labels we give things in an effort to wrap our puny little brains around their underlying natures, when ninety-nine percent of the time the totality of the reality is an entirely different beast. The wisest man is the silent one. Examine his actions. Judge him by them.” Proverbs 17:28 confirms: “Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.”
Words are often considered as an effective means of communication between two or more people. However, for some, especially those of a different nationality, they may have little meaning or understanding. There are many people in life, living in countries in the world, that only speak a language that is native to their country. If a person is not of a linguistic trait, then problems may be encountered during an attempted conversation. In cases like this, it is often usual, with the significant difficulty of communication, to use hands or expressions to help ease the barrier in lack of understanding.
Silence is a universal but singular language that can convey so much with very little effort. There are no words to remember or sentences to formulate, as any exchange primarily concentrates on facial expressions, actions, gestures or touch. If someone smiles at another person, it is of no consequence what their nationality is, they automatically portray a feeling of pleasure or happiness to others. If another is crying, then a feeling of sadness or pain is conveyed. If a person touches or holds another’s hand, that may confer a sense of reassurance, sympathy or love.
Those who suffer from deafness usually depend on sign language to understand or react to the attempted communications of others. They may have the ability to answer in a certain speech form, but problems may still continue to evolve or become an experience due to the fact that there are reportedly over 300 different sign languages throughout the world. Just as some countries have regional variations in speech or accent, so the same applies in the art of global sign language.
A lack of words can be effective, Just as young children, who can’t understand or speak actual words may communicate with their parents or friends by certain actions which form an identifiable pattern of requirements, so the language of silence adopts a similar approach. Silence can demand attention. If a lecturer at college pauses for a long period while delivering a lesson, many people will look up to see why he has paused for so long. It reintroduces a focus to the student. The silence suddenly changes what may have been considered a drone, back to effective listening and learning.
Silence can improve awareness and observation. Life is full of both major and minor distractions. Many good things in life may be lost or overlooked by the unnecessary clutter that accumulates in our everyday lives.
Monastic silence has been defined as a spiritual practice that is recommended in a variety of religious traditions for purposes, including facilitation of approaching deity and achieving elevated states of spiritual purity.
Some monasteries invoke a vow of silence in their day-to-day lives. This improves their relationships and increases their knowledge and focus on God. It creates harmonious living by reducing the distractions that may frequently occur through unnecessary communication.
A story is told of a minister who became fascinated at the concept of communication by silence. He decided, for a particular service of the word that he was scheduled to lead, to try an experiment with the combined assistance of his congregation, to ascertain the possibility or credibility of a no-word service. His main intention was to establish whether or not his congregation would glean any satisfaction or understanding from a service without voice. The only exceptions to the rule were that the congregation were allowed to stand and sing the nominated hymns chosen for the service, speak out loud the words of the creed, Lord’s prayer, confession and all other statutory required elements of the service.
A service sheet was handed out to all who attended to be closely followed and where appropriate, spoken by the congregation. The minister decided to adopt the basic principles of the known game of charades, where one person acts out the title of a book or film without actually speaking a word. Silent expressions or hand actions are used to indicate the type of genre applicable, and clues were supported by further actions to promote the necessary thought process that may lead to a positive outcome and reveal identifiable words that formed the religious meaning of the service. To make the congregation stand, he would lift his hands into the air, to sit he would lower them. For prayer, he would clasp his hands together and for the final blessing, a sign of the cross was given. The service was considered by some as fun, but extremely unorthodox by others.
Words can be unnecessary or even meaningless in times of adversity or heartbreak. The love and care created or displayed by comfort, embracement, holding hands, etc. doesn’t need additional words, it speaks for itself. Silence can be extremely powerful. It can show respect and remembrance. It can show gratitude for the bravery and efforts of others. It is versatile. When words can’t really express what one thinks or wants to say, then silence can fill the gap. It can diffuse the most heated of discussions. It can, in itself, become priceless, its worth can be far greater than any spoken words.
Rumi, an Afghanistan-born 13th-century poet and scholar once remarked: “Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing there is a field. I'll meet you there. When the soul lies down in that grass the world is too full to talk about.” Isaiah 53:7 confirms: “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.”
A thousand words may be said, but not one word understood, and yet, not one word need be uttered and everything has been said. Revelation 8:1 reminds us: “When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.”
Amen.
