Tonight, we read Step number 11 on “talkativeness and silence.” Fittingly, it is very brief, if not the briefest of all of the steps of The Ladder. This brevity is St. John’s way of teaching us that so much of our speech involves vainglory; putting ourselves on display. We seek through it to step out of ourselves; betraying the painful experience we have as human beings of our lack of identity. God has created us for himself. He has created us in his image and likeness precisely that we might not experience ourselves in isolation, but rather in communion. However, to enter into communion with God means to step out of our limited ways of perceiving the world around us and reality as a whole. This means allowing God, through the silence,
to draw us in faith into the experience of His life, light and love. To give ourselves over to talkativeness is to find ourselves dissipated. Our desire for God cools and the emptiness that we feel drives us to fill our lives with anything and everything so that we do not feel alone. Despite having God dwelling within us, once we lose sight of him, silence becomes an enemy. Therefore, John tells us that we must foster silence as a habit. We must allow God to show us its value, and what it makes possible for us. The first step is to create external silence. Once we have done this, we often see the unsettledness of our minds and hearts.
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Text of chat during the group:
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXVIII, Part IV
The Evergetinos: Book Two - Hypothesis XVIII, Part III
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXVIII, Part III
The Evergetinos: Book Two - Hypothesis XVIII, Part II
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXVIII, Part II
The Evergetinos: Book Two - Hypothesis XVIII, Part I
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXVII, Part IX, and XXVIII, Part I
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXVII: On Stillness of Mind and Body, Part VIII
The Evergetinos: Book Two - Hypothesis XVII, Part I
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXVII: On Stillness of Mind and Body, Part VII
The Evergetinos: Book Two - Hypothesis XVI, Part II
The Evergetinos: Book Two - Hypothesis XV, Part IV and XVI, Part I
The Evergetinos: Book Two - Hypothesis XV, Part III
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXVII: On Stillness of Mind and Body, Part VI
The Evergetinos: Book Two - Hypothesis XV, Part II
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXVII: On Stillness of Mind and Body, Part V
The Evergetinos: Book Two - Hypothesis XIV, and XV, Part I
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXVII: On Stillness of Mind and Body, Part IV
The Evergetinos: Book Two - Hypothesis XIII, Part II
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXVII: On Stillness of Mind and Body, Part III
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