(Originally published in the March 2016 church newsletter)
Seeing as how my life’s work revolves around music, you may be surprised to hear that the topic of this month's article is silence. Isn't music the opposite of silence? Well, that’s up for debate: there are many different ways one can define music. One of the definitions I like best holds that music is a judicious mixture of both sound and silence. Consider the theme of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, a timeless work I’m sure everyone can recognize:
What is it that makes this opening statement so powerful? I submit to you that it's not just the four-note motives themselves that create drama, but also the silence between them: Beethoven deliberately uses it to heighten the tension and so draw the listener in. Indeed, one of my favorite moments of a symphony concert is that brief silence after the orchestra has finished its last note, but before the audience begins to applaud. In that split second, the air buzzes with a kind of electric energy that is beyond words.
The Hebrew scriptures frequently encourage silence as an appropriate response to the overwhelming majesty of God:
▪ ‘It is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord’ (Lam. 3:26)
▪ ‘The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him’ (Hab. 2:20)
▪ ‘To everything there is a season…a time to keep silence, and a time to speak’ (Eccl. 3:7)
▪ ‘Be silent, all people, before the Lord; he has arisen from his holy dwelling’ (Zech. 2:13)
Some Christians do embrace communal silence: Quaker worship includes long periods in which believers wait for messages from the Holy Spirit. By contrast, Presbyterianism has always focused on teaching and explaining the scriptures. That in itself is a good thing, but its side effect is that our worship tends to be 'wordy', in that the congregation is not allowed much space to simply be in God's presence and listen for that ‘still, small voice’. As Rev. Jensen noted in his sermon on the first Sunday in Lent, prayer is defined as conversation with God...and it’s not much of a conversation if we do all the talking.
For this reason, the Worship & Music Committee has requested that during Lent we replace the choral call to prayer with time for silent personal prayer. And what if, instead of praying, your mind starts to wander? That's okay! Silent prayer is a discipline: just as with bodily exercise, one must attempt it over and over in order to become proficient. The important thing is that we start somewhere. After all, what do we have to lose?
Until next time,
Kevin
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