Friday, June 12, 2020

Friday, Tenth Week of Ordinary Time: God's language


Fr Richard's homily for the Tenth Week of Ordinary Time

Homily: God's language

When Elijah went out to stand on Mount Horeb the Lord came to him not in the might of a wind, the strength of an earthquake, or the flame of a fire. But He came in the gentleness of a breeze. In other words, God appeared not in a dramatic moment but amid silence and stillness.

Today’s reading teaches us much about where we encounter God in our own lives of prayer. The great mystic St John of the Cross once wrote: “The first language of God is silence.” With these words, that great Doctor of the Church reminds us how quiet contemplation is essential if we are to come closer to the Lord.

Silence doesn’t merely mean the absence of noise – but also the stillness of our minds and hearts. There can be all sorts of thoughts, dilemmas, and distractions that can mean our period of prayer isn’t the most “silent”. We shouldn’t worry too much about the momentary distractions – we are human after all and the Lord delights even in our willingness to give Him time in prayer. But when our mind does wander, we should always try to refocus our hearts and minds towards the Loving God who is in our midst; who delights in us coming to meet Him.

In the times when we come to that true silence – the Lord can gift us with His wonderful consolation, when it is His will. Indeed, it’s always important to remember that a profound spiritual encounter of the Lord’s presence is His gift, not our own achievement.

This current period is a wonderful time to find that solitude where we look at God and He looks at us. To help us enter into a period of contemplative prayer, we do well to begin with today’s Psalm. “O Lord, hear my voice when I call; have mercy and answer…It is your face, O Lord, that I seek; hide not your face.”

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