Holy Listening

 
The political quarrel these past few days about the jobs speech President Obama wants to give before Congress offers yet another example of unseemly behavior by our nation's leaders. Both "sides" are equally responsible and the outcome is unfortunate. Who wants to give up the NFL's first game of the season for a policy speech, especially when the Green Bay Packers are involved? (Of course, video recorders render this comment obsolete but still there is the thrill of being there, live, with something that is as important as the football season's first kickoff.)

The controversy reminds us of the importance of what can be called holy listening. For those on the spiritual path, the best way to discern a course of action is not through aggression or confrontation but by sitting quietly and and simply being with God, in an open yet alert mind.

This involves completely clearing one's mind of all chatter. We may use our aural sense to accomplish this, since it is through our "mind's ear" that we struggle with all the noise. For many of us this is a mighty effort but it is also a skill which can be learned. Think of the act of breathing as a means for clearing out that clutter. Then simply listen, in an uncritical way, to the sounds of the world around you. After some time, in that state of aural attentiveness, the space opens up into which the Triune God can enter. Once we are aware of God's presence we may then ask, "What is your will for me?"

Could this be the "sound of sheer silence" (1 Kings 19:12, NRSV) of which Elijah finally became aware?







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