Listening Above the Noise

Speaking as a middle-aged woman, and seeing the world through her eyes, I think there is good chance I see some things that younger people might not.  Those who grew up with certain things around them, without seeing them develop and come into being, may not have the capacity to see what has been done to our society through these things.  And it was told to me this week that maybe I have something to say and give, in a space where not everything is obvious or easily seen.

There is a story in the Tanakh (Jewish Bible) that talks about the voice of G-d.  It explains what the voice of G-d is and how one can hear Him. It takes place in the book of I Kings and begins with the prophet Elijah running from Jezebel, the wife of the king, who is out to kill Elijah.  While he is on the run, G-d calls to Elijah and tells him to come out of his hiding place so that He can speak to him.  At first, there is a wind, an earthquake, and a fire, but G-d’s voice, as we might think (mostly due to Hollywood) is in none of these. 

“And after the fire – a soft, murmuring sound. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his mantle about his face and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Then a voice addressed him: ‘Why are you here, Elijah?’ He answered, ‘I am moved by zeal for the Lord, the G-d of Hosts….’” (I Kings 19: 12, 13)

The Lord goes on to have a conversation with Elijah and instructs him on his next moves. But what is important to us today I think is that G-d was not to be heard in the loud and thunderous but in the still, small voice.

I was reading recently Rabbi Jonathan Sacks’ explanation of this passage and he says that the still, small voice, “kol demama daka” in Hebrew, is literally translated “the sound of slender silence.”  He says this slender silence is the sound you can only hear if you are listening. (J. Sacks, “Studies in Spirituality”, p. 176). It is in fact, a soft, murmuring sound.

That this is the true voice of G-d to us, means that we must be listening.  In order to hear His soft voice though, we have to be able to hear it. And to hear it in our culture today, means setting down the phone, perhaps even turning it off for a while, closing our laptops, turning off the television and stereo, and finding a place that is apart from all the noise to listen for Him.

For me, this means turning away from all these devices, and heading outside to a forest or lake, a walking path, often somewhere away from the city, and simply to listen while trying to turn off all the other noise in my head.  And this takes time.  Because G-d primarily speaks to our minds and hearts, it takes practice for us to the turn off what is already there in order to hear His murmuring voice. 

But once we hear it, we discover that His voice is strong and steady.  We realize it’s been there all along, and it is a voice we had been in the habit of turning off or running away from. And there are ways to distinguish His voice. For me as a Jew, I have learned by reading the Torah and Tanakh, which are His word, and by reading our prayer books and talking to Him.

Reading may be a skill that many have lost and I don’t read as often as I used to either, but being in the practice of reading His word, even briefly, during my day, orients me toward His voice personally, and for the rest of the day.

And there are so many other books that speak of spirituality available to us, to help teach us what it means to be in relationship with Him on a daily, monthly and year after yearly basis.  My favourites are written by Rabbi Jonathan Sacks and Rabbi Abraham Heschel. They have much to say to the spiritual life of anyone, but you discover your favourites as you head out on your own journey.

Meeting with G-d, finding Him in the pages of His word, and hearing Him speak directly to us through the slender silence - the still, small voice - it is only then that we can see we have grown. We realize that being closer to Him means being closer to our real selves. And we have a much greater level of peace and calm in our lives.  Because we are finally in touch with the Person who is really the creator and sustainer of our lives. The One who directs us because He loves us more than we’ve ever been loved, more than we can even comprehend. The One who’s been there all along, waiting for us come out of our hiding place.

And what He leaves me with today…

“We should never forget that each of us is different, each a universe, each a distinctive fragment of the Divine.”

(Rabbi Sacks, Covenant and Conversation - Numbers, p. 77)

And you will know Him because He speaks to each of us in a way that we will recognize and understand, because He is speaking to our very own fragment of G-d that lives in us. And then we won’t want to be without that voice. Ever.

Softly Falls the Sky”

A painting I recently completed, that speaks to me of the quiet and peace that comes from listening to G-d’s voice.

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