Tony Woodlief on his time at St. Fidelis:

I prayed in that shadowed chapel until there were no words. I prayed beyond the words, into the silence. The silence is what we fear, the silence when the presence of God can neither be denied nor deflected with vain prayers and empty mumblings. I wept into that silence. I laid myself bare before it. I realized how little I know about prayer.

It’s easy to see why so many of us — Christians and pagans alike — spend lifetimes running from the living God, our hands stopping our ears, our mouths babbling prayers or blasphemies, all in an effort to avoid the great silence where God speaks to man. That silence is a fearful place, but there is love there, the great love of a parent. There is mercy too, and strength for the uncompleted race.

Tags: blogs, Prayer