Practice of silence

Silence as a form of worship is practised in most religions, the discipline of inner and external silence bringing a special depth of communication with God. Of the three forms of prayer - oral, prayer in the heart, and spiritual - Francisco de Osuna says of the third, or spiritual, "The greater is this love, the fewer are its words. Because true love works in silence ... ". Silent prayer is experienced by many [mystics]

as being made by God himself, and the practices of [meditation]

and [adoration]

are carried out in silence, during which a special quality of external quiet is achieved. The awareness of the [presence of God]

, both in private and in public worship, occurs in and produces silence, as, for instance, during the [expectant silence]

of the Quakers and at the sacramental presence of God in the Roman Catholic Mass. The practice of silence is said also to give great discrimination about when to speak, so that what is spoken is directed right to the point and has great power.