Recently I attended an insightful presentation by Kathryn
Damiano on “A Quaker Spirituality of Listening.” St. Benedict valued the
practice of listening so highly that the word “listen” (an anagram of “silent,”
by the way) is the first word of his rule. Listening seems like a simple
activity, but consider what needs to happen for us to truly listen:
• We need to be awake and open to the presence of Christ in
the person to whom we are listening
• We need to let go of what we think we know to be able to hear
what is really being said
• We need to let go of impatience and trust that the Spirit
will provide insight at her own pace
• We need to be quiet and practice listening to God within
for guidance
Listening is crucial to our observance of Holy Week, as we
attempt to empty ourselves of judgment, of separateness, and of the compulsive
need for activity, as Jesus did, to hear the call to love and service at this
moment in our lives. Jane Hirshfield said, “Attention alters what it touches.”
May our attentive listening during Holy Week transfuse these days of
remembrance and help us enter more deeply into the mystery of God-with-us
who suffers, dies, and rises to new life.
No comments:
Post a Comment