Oct. 1, 2014

Overheard in the Parish Hall:  “If there's an empty space in the church, people will naturally fill it up.”

I was sitting in my office last week on what was a busy day at church.  People were constantly in and out needing this or that.  Hardly any of them needed or wanted to see me, so I was there working on the sermon or bulletin or newsletter and not really paying attention to outside conversations when that comment hit me like a bolt.

If there's an empty space in the church, people will naturally fill it up.

Is this why churches hold onto Sunday school supplies and felt boards from 1967 – because if they are tossed out we will be left with an empty space?  Is this why “youth rooms” are packed with games nobody plays anymore – because churches feel better if their youth rooms aren't empty?

And the more I thought about it, the more I thought that that comment could just as well apply to our liturgy as it did to an actual physical space.

If there's an empty space in the church, people will naturally fill it up.

That empty space in worship is also known as silence.  Have you ever noticed that people become uncomfortable when there's too much silence?  Try going to lunch with a friend and not speaking.

But silence can be a very useful spiritual discipline.  Isadore of Pelusia, one of the Desert Fathers, said, “To live without speaking is better than to speak without living.”  Two old adages state that “Silence is golden,” and, “God gave you two ears and one mouth.”  And in the BCP, the rubrics suggest silence in two places – after the readings and immediately before the General Confession – and mandate a period of silence in one:  after the priest breaks the bread.  Silence may also be used at other times, such as after the sermon, during Communion, and before the service begins in preparation for worship.

It was while at seminary that I discovered the value of silence through contemplative prayer, lectio divina, and in worship.  I carried that to both Montana and here with the incorporation of silence into those parts of the service mentioned above.

Silence can help us slow down.  Silence can help us hear God.  Silence can help us be fully present.

As you enter the church in anticipation of receiving God's holy gifts, remember that this is your time with God, and spend that time in intentional silence and prayer; it's coffee hour that was designed for socializing.  Also remember that silence is called for during the liturgy and can (should?) be used to reflect on what you have heard and to prepare for what is coming.  Don't be surprised if those moments of silence begin to get longer – I will not have forgotten what comes next; but I will be giving you space to listen to what the Spirit is saying to God's people.

Silence is not an empty space that needs to be filled up.  Silence is a space already filled with God.