Silence - Louder Than Words What everyone needs to know about silence in the liturgy

SILENCE has a long history in the Christian tradition. Intimately connected to divine mystery, it is not restricted to monks and nuns living the discipline of daily silence. Today scores of young people, many not religiously affiliated, are drawn to Taizé song and scripture, enveloped in extended periods of communal silence. Silence speaks louder than words.

Silence is one form of participation in the liturgy, along with acclamations, responses, psalmody, antiphons, songs, actions, gestures, and posture (SC 30). Each is integral, important. Yet silence is least appreciated, its rubrics often neglected. Yet the revised General Instruction of the Roman Missal accords silence greater emphasis than before (GIRM 45, 56).

Designated times for silence are not ‘spaces’ for us to think, to find some didactic message. In being silent together, surrendering the ego to the inherent power of ritual prayer, we help one another to get in touch with the movement of God present in our lives and in the world.

A two-fold way to develop the practice and understanding of silence involves: (a) learning by doing and (b) reflection upon the doing.

(a) Ritual can take us on a profound journey from events in our everyday living to the mystery which they contain, an encounter with Jesus Christ who is present in the mystery being celebrated (GIRM 16). Doing the liturgy is the privileged place for catechising the People of God (CCC 1074).

(b) Effective teaching about silence comes from reflecting on our actual experience: what happened to/for us in the silence? Teaching, explaining and telling about something is necessary but can never match the actual experience of what takes place in the liturgical celebration.

Developing a couple of strategies, introduced in small steps over the course of several years, requires adequate formation of liturgical ministers if the practice of silence is to be experienced as authentic and spiritually fruitful. Introducing a change in practice needs regular pastoral theological information.

In every instance, silence is for prayer. Everyone, including the priest, prays silently and does nothing else. Here are three opportunities to nurture the practice of silence in the Mass, selected from the GIRM’s recommended times for silence.

First Opportunity

The proclamation of the scriptures in the Liturgy of the Word brings the assembly into the presence of the living God. The dialogue God has with us demands short intervals of silence, accompanied by the interior working of the Spirit, so that the word may be grasped by the heart and a response prepared through prayer. The word can only be spoken and heard in silence, outward and inward, and so find a home in us, as it did in Mary, woman of the word and inseparably woman of silence (see VD 66; GIRM 56, 57).

♦ After each reading all meditate briefly on what they have heard. Begin with 30 seconds of silence, increasing the time gradually as your assembly grows accustomed to inhabiting unhurried time.

♦ Distributing the readings, Responsorial Psalm and Gospel Acclamation among several ministers (GIRM 61, 109) effectively mirrors the dialogue with God and is more likely to be experienced as such. Changing the focus from first reader, to psalmist, to second reader, to cantor assists a reflective attitude (GIRM 101-104).

♦ A data projector (looking), printed scriptures (reading) and the movement of musicians intrude upon listening and responding to our sacred stories, disrupting the rhythm of proclamation - silence - response.

♦ The conclusion of the homily also invites a brief silent reflection so that we see ourselves as doers of the word and not hearers only (James 1:22). What is the balance between the mission and silence?

Second Opportunity

GIRM 45 suggests silence even before the celebration begins. Silence preceding the start of Mass is not a criticism of any exchange of greetings between parishioners. The narthex is the most appropriate place for conversation, allowing others to recollect themselves in the church.

♦ Acolyte, server and priest will have prepared everything well in advance, avoiding last minute distractions of the gathering assembly. Their ministry is to serve the assembly’s prayer.

♦ Musicians and choir are silent, with rehearsal conducted in another room or completed earlier.

♦ The priest recollects himself in the sacristy before the entrance procession.

 Third Opportunity

A brief silence occurs in the prayers assigned to the priest such as the Collect. The priest begins with the invitation: Let us pray; then everyone prays silently with the priest to bring to mind God’s presence and their own intentions; the priest speaks the prayer aloud, gathering up the prayers of the community (GIRM 54, 89, 127, 165).

♦ This silence is integral to the Collect. The priest ensures his own attention, modelling for everyone that we do nothing other than pray quietly.

♦ The server is ready before the invitation, the Missal open at the right page.

​In selecting designated times to observe a silence, the challenge is to encourage people to manage an inner stillness devoid of personal distractions and concerns. It needs to be set up in the Sunday Mass as we time rather than me time. Undoing current practices requires sensitivity and care. But liturgy is about savouring the moment, a kind of holy ‘wasting time with God’ in one another’s presence.

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This article was originally published in Liturgy News ​Vol 44(4) December 2014. Reprinted with permission.

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