Liturgy and Silence

Silence should be observed at the designated times as part of the celebration. Its function depends on the time it occurs in each part of the celebration. Thus at the penitential rite and again after the invitation to pray, all recollect themselves; at the conclusion of a reading or the homily, all mediate briefly on what has been heard; after communion, all praise God in silent prayer. GIRM, #23
Silence in a song is as necessary as the notes we sing and hear. Silence helps to define music from noise, it gives shape to the phrases we sing, it allows us to breathe. So too, silence helps to shape our liturgy. It allows the Holy Spirit to enter our being, and enables us to offer our individual prayers, to reflect and to give thanks.
“The proper use of periods of silent prayer and reflection will help to render the celebration less mechanical and impersonal and lend a more prayerful spirit to the liturgical rite. Just as there should be no celebration without song, so too there should be no celebration without periods for silent prayer and reflection.” –Forward, GIRM

An old adage says, “Silence is golden.” However, we at Sacred Heart say, “Silence isn’t golden, it’s prayer!” In our ongoing liturgical renewal, this Lent our parish focuses on the deliberate use of silence at mass, as requested by the Church’s liturgical documents.

Where specifically should we observe silence, and why?
• Preparation before mass:
Announcements will be made approximately five minutes before mass begins, thus allowing for a minute or two for silence so each member of the assembly can calm and ready themselves for the celebration of eucharist through personal prayer, or reading through the Scripture readings for the day before mass begins.

• During the Opening Prayer: after the presider’s invitation, “Let us pray…”
“…next the priest invites the people to pray and together with him they observe a brief silence so that they may realize they are in God’s presence and may call their petitions to mind.” GIRM, #32
It’s interesting to note that the Opening Prayer is also known as “the Collect,” because this prayer collects all of the silent prayers of the assembly and offers them through the spoken text for the given day.
• After each Scripture proclamation and homily. The introduction to the revised Lectionary for Mass puts it more strongly,
“The liturgy of the word must be celebrated in a way that fosters meditation; clearly, any sort of haste that hinders recollection must be avoided. The dialogue between God and his people taking place through the Holy Spirit demands short intervals of silence, suited to the assembled congregation, as an opportunity to take the word of God to heart and to prepare a response to it in prayer. Proper times for silence during the liturgy of the word are, for example, before this liturgy begins, after the first and the second reading, after the homily.” #28. Introduction to Lectionary for Mass
• Communion Thanksgiving:
“After communion, the priest and people may spend some time in silent prayer. If desired, a hymn, psalm, or some other song of praise may be sung by the entire congregation.” GIRM, #56j
This directive clearly requires communal silence, or a communal song.
Our challenge beginning this Lent is striving to use silence as opportunities to meet God, as outlined in the liturgical documents. In our modern American culture, we are always on the go, minding our own business and darting about with our electronic personal assistants, Walkman and mp3 players and other assorted gadgets to keep our minds and ears occupied. From such a lifestyle, dealing with silence is hard and uncomfortable, especially when it’s in a communal setting. We often don’t know what to do with it. In this context our liturgy, which cries out for periodic silence, can be seen as counter cultural. Lent affords us a time to stop, look, and listen to the silence. Perhaps in the silent moments of the liturgy we can deepen our personal encounter with God.

GIRM is the General Instruction of the Roman Missal.