There exist two forms of deafness: spiritual, as well as physical. Undoubtedly, physical deafness or being hard of hearing can cause enormous suffering for the person experiencing the deafness, as well as for those living with this person. Not understanding what is said and asking repeatedly to say it over again causes great frustration and possibly even depression in the afflicted person. Those living with the deaf or partially deaf person suffer equally from the fact that communication with this person that was once fluent and fluid has come to a screeching halt and is now exceedingly difficult.
If physical deafness or partial deafness causes great frustration and pain, how much more grave is the reality of spiritual deafness, or being partially deaf spiritually?
All too frequently we willfully become partially deaf—meaning we hear only what we want to hear! How often have parents struggled with this phenomenon with their children who hear only what they want to hear!
Examples abound! Mom tells little Johnny to make his bed, take out the trash, and clean the bathroom. Mom tells little Johnny to tend to these domestic chores five times, but it seems as if the little guy is not just partially deaf, but totally deaf. Changing the scenario, Mom makes her request in this manner: “By the way, Johnny, we are going to Disneyland for the day and then to Baskin Robins for ice cream as soon as you make your bed, take out the trash, and clean the bathroom.” Lo and behold, Mom witnesses a miracle in her little nine-year old Johnny. All of these chores that Johnny did not seem to hear the first five times, he suddenly hears with utmost clarity the sixth time when it is preceded by the reality of the Disneyland rides and the multi-flavored ice cream delights at Baskin Robins!
This can be summarized with one key concept that applies to us all: we hear and respond to what causes us delight on a physical, emotional, or even spiritual level.
Let us address this challenge on the level of our spiritual life. The young Samuel, after not interpreting the voice of God three times, finally understood through the direction of Eli, his Spiritual Director that God indeed was speaking to him. The next time the young Samuel heard his name being called he was summoned to cry out: “Speak, O Lord, for your servant is listening.” (1 Sam 3:10) This he did and he became one of the greatest prophets in Israel.
The Psalmist challenges us with these short but penetrating words of exhortation: “If today you hear his voice harden not your hearts as in the days of Meribah and Massah.” (Psalm 95: 7-8) For the Jewish people, sin could be defined simply as not listening to the voice of God—becoming deaf, partially deaf, or temporarily deaf to the voice of God.
Jesus had great compassion for the sick, the paralytics, the blind, the lepers, as well as the deaf-mutes. One of the short but important Rites in the Sacrament of Baptism is precisely this: the Ephatha-rite. Jesus had compassion on the deaf-mute and He healed him by touching his ears and mouth, and by uttering the word Ephatha—meaning, be opened! Immediately, this deaf-mute man recovered his hearing, as well as his ability to speak. By the way, deafness and speech impediments are intimately interconnected.
There is a famous saying in Spanish related to the topic of deafness: “No hay peor ciego que aquel que no quiere ver; no hay peor sordo que aquel qhe no quiere oir.” Translation: “There is no one more blind than the one who does not want to see; there is no one mor deaf than the one who does not want to hear.” In other words, in the spiritual life it is all too easy to want to be both deaf, blind, and at times mute to the pertinent things related to God.
Let us strive now to open our ears, our eyes, and our lips so that we can be aware of the different ways that God can speak to us and avoid all forms of being spiritually temporarily deaf. In all truth, let us pray fervently and sincerely the request of the young Samuel in the Temple: “Speak, O Lord, for your servant is listening.” The following are the many ways that God can speak to us; hopefully we will have open ears.
1. The Word of God. One of the most obvious ways that God tries to communicate with us is through the Bible itself. For that reason one of the best definitions of the Bible is simply this: The Word of God!
2. Holy Mass. Next, in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass God speaks to us in many ways including the Readings in the Mass, the, Consecration, and most especially in the Holy Eucharist—which is the Real-Presence of Jesus. The Sacred Host is truly Jesus Himself.
3. The Priest. The ordained priest acts in the Person of Christ and the more fully the priest lives out Holy Orders, the more powerfully will God Himself speak to us. Let us pray for more priests and more holy priests!
4. The Commandments. Jesus expressed this with great clarity: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” (Jn. 14: 15) How often while teaching catechism to the First Communion children have I told them that God really does speak to us. One of the clearest ways that God speaks to children is through the voice of their parents. “So when you children obey your parents, you are really obeying God.” By the way, this is the 4th Commandment.
5. The Homily. When we attend Holy Mass on Sunday not only should we participate fully, actively, and consciously in Holy Mass, but also we should pay special attention to the priest and his homily in the Mass. That should be God’s message for us each week and we should try to observe it and put it into practice!
6. Chance? Nothing happens “by chance.” We do not believe in chance, or luck, or destiny, or fortune-tellers, or crystal balls. Rather, we believe in Divine Providence. All that happens in life is willed or at least permitted by God. This being said, God can allow evil things to happen so that He can bring good out of that evil. Even in the most difficult and painful circumstances in our lives, God is present working in it for our spiritual welfare. Sometimes it is only later in life that can we see how God’s hand was working in our anguish, suffering, and apparent failures in order to bring about a greater good. When we are too close to the tapestry, our view is limited; but when we step back, we can see the totality of the artistic masterpiece. An eagle sees the totality of the mountain better than the ant at the foot of the mountain. So too God sees a bigger picture and is present in the many intricate and even complicated circumstances of our lives. Trust Him! What a beautiful prayer: JESUS, I TRUST IN YOU!
7. Well-formed conscience. It is incumbent upon parents to form the consciences of their children. As adults we must also keep working on the formation of our own conscience. If we fail to do so, we sin and we hurt God, ourselves, and others. At this point our conscience experiences pangs of remorse; God intervenes and pricks our conscience when we sin. This indeed is another way that God’s voice can be heard.
8. Heavenly Inspirations. Another mode by which God can speak to us is through the medium of heavenly inspirations. The Holy Spirit enlightens our mind with the Truth and when we follow it, we experience consolation.
9. Inner Locutions. Related to the topic of heavenly inspirations is that of inner locutions. This is when the Holy Spirit with a gentle but insistent interior Word speaks in the depths of our heart. However, if we do not have recollection and interior silence it will be hard for us to pick up the gentle but insistent voice of the Sweet Guest of the Soul—the Holy Spirit.
10. Our Lady’s Prayerful Presence. How often in the History of the Church, as well in the lives of the saints, has Our Lady intervened in a most powerful manner in her visitations. Also, her statues, her paintings, her portraits, her icons, her Churches, her Cathedrals, her Basilicas, her poems, her songs, her medals, her Rosaries, her Scapulars—in all of these we become aware of how much God loves us by showering us with the perpetual presence of OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP!
In conclusion, friends in Jesus and Mary, like the little Johnny who could not hear the voice of his Mother until she brought into the conversation Disneyland and Baskin Robins, we too can at times be partially deaf spiritually. Let us pray that starting now we will pray with great sincerity and docility, really meaning the words of the young Samuel: “Speak, O Lord, for your servant is listening.” For, “My delight is in your word that I meditate on day and night!” (Psalm 1: 2).
✠
Image: John Singelton Copley, Eli and Samuel, public domain.
