From The Power
of Silence
by Cardinal Sarah
Chapter III
SILENCE, THE MYSTERY, AND
THE SACRED
223. The notion of sacredness is abused,
particularly in the West. In the countries that claim to be secular,
emancipated from religion and from God, there is no longer any connection with
the sacred.
****
The simplest faithful know that the sacred realities
are one of their most precious treasures.
****
225. In Africa, the sacred is something quite
obvious for the Christian people, but also for believers of all religions. Many
Westerners look down on the sacred as something infantile and superstitious,
but this disdain results from the self-importance of spoiled children. I do not
hesitate to say that the men of the Church who want to distance themselves from
the sacred harm humanity by depriving it of loving communion with God.
****
226. Without radical humility that is expressed
in gestures of adoration and in sacred rituals, no friendship with God is
possible.
****
230. To refuse silence filled with confident fear
and adoration is to refuse God the freedom to take hold of us by his love and
presence. Sacred silence allows man to place himself joyfully at God’s
disposal. It enables him to overcome the arrogant attitude that would claim
that God is at the disposal of all the whims of his children.
****
Sacred silence is truly the place where we can
encounter God, because we come to him with the proper attitude of a man who
trembles and stands at a distance while hoping confidently.
****
When God appears, praise alone should flow from our
heart. Conversely, every form of display that gives the impression of a
spectacle must disappear. Why show the vanity of a profane action or of a
worldly word in the presence of his infinite grandeur? “The Lord is in his holy
temple; let all the earth keep silence before him” (Hab 2:20).
****
232. Silence teaches us a great rule of the
spiritual life: familiarity does not promote intimacy; on the contrary, a
proper distance is a condition for communion. Humanity advances toward love
through adoration.
****
Under the yoke of secular reason, which only makes us
feel guilty, we have forgotten that worship and the sacred are the only
entrances to the spiritual life.
****
In 1978, in an article in Communio, the theologian
Hans Urs von Balthasar wrote: No liturgy designed by men could be “worthy” of
the subject of their homage, of God at whose throne the heavenly choirs
prostrate themselves with covered faces, having cast off their crowns and
ornaments before offering adoration.
****
235. Since the reform of Paul VI, and despite the
intention of that great pope, sometimes in the liturgy there is an air of
misplaced, noisy familiarity. Under the pretext of seeking to make access to
God easy and approachable, some have wanted everything in the liturgy to be
immediately intelligible. This egalitarian intention may seem commendable. But
in thus reducing the sacred mystery to good ideas, we prevent the faithful from
approaching the true God. Under the pretext of pedagogy, some priests indulge
in endless flat, horizontal commentaries. These pastors are afraid that silence
in the presence of the Most High might disconcert the faithful.
****
How many priests walk toward the altar of sacrifice
while chattering, discussing, or greeting the people who are present instead of
losing themselves in a sacred silence full of reverence. . .
****
237. At the beginning of our Eucharistic
celebrations, how is it possible to eliminate Christ carrying his Cross and
walking painfully under the weight of our sins toward the place of sacrifice?
There are so many priests who enter triumphantly and walk up toward the altar,
greeting people left and right, so as to appear sympathetic.
****
Just look at the sad spectacle of some Eucharistic
celebrations. . . . Why so much frivolousness and worldliness at
the moment of the Holy Sacrifice? Why so much profanation and superficiality,
given the extraordinary priestly grace that renders us able to make the Body
and Blood of Christ substantially present by the invocation of the Spirit? Why
do some think that they are obliged to improvise or invent Eucharistic Prayers
that conceal the sacred prayers in a wash of petty, human fervor? Are Christ’s
words insufficient, making it necessary to multiply merely human words? In such
a unique and essential sacrifice, is there any need for such a display of
imagination and subjective creativity?
****
Many fervent Christians who
are moved by the Passion and death of Christ on the Cross no longer have the
strength to weep or to utter a cry of pain to the priests and bishops who make
their appearance as entertainers and set themselves up as the main protagonists
of the Eucharist. These believers tell us nevertheless: “We do not want to
gather with men around a man! We want to see Jesus! Show him to us in the
silence and humility of your prayer!” Sacred silence is a good belonging to the
faithful, and clerics must not deprive them of it.
