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The Power of Silence

The Power of Silence

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$18.95 - $18.95
$18.95
$18.95
$18.95 - $18.95
$18.95
Publisher: Ignatius Press
Publication Date:
Format: Paperback
Pages: 248
Availability: In Stock
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In a time when technology penetrates our lives in so many ways and materialism exerts such a powerful influence over us, Cardinal Robert Sarah presents a bold book about the strength of silence. The modern world generates so much noise, he says, that seeking moments of silence has become both harder and more necessary than ever before.

Silence is the indispensable doorway to the divine, explains the cardinal in this profound conversation with Nicolas Diat. Within the hushed and hallowed walls of the La Grande Chartreux, the famous Carthusian monastery in the French Alps, Cardinal Sarah addresses the following questions: Can those who do not know silence ever attain truth, beauty, or love? Do not wisdom, artistic vision, and devotion spring from silence, where the voice of God is heard in the depths of the human heart?

After the international success of God or Nothing, Cardinal Sarah seeks to restore to silence its place of honor and importance. "Silence is more important than any other human work," he says, "for it expresses God. The true revolution comes from silence; it leads us toward God and others so as to place ourselves humbly and generously at their service."

"Without noise, postmodern man falls into a dull, insistent uneasiness. He is accustomed to permanent background noise, which sickens yet reassures him. Without noise, man is feverish, lost. Noise gives him security, like a drug on which he has become dependent. With its festive appearance, noise is a whirlwind that avoids facing itself. Agitation becomes a tranquilizer, a sedative, a morphine pump, a sort of reverie, an incoherent dream-world. But this noise is a dangerous, deceptive medicine, a diabolic lie that helps man avoid confronting himself in his interior emptiness. The awakening will necessarily be brutal"

Robert Sarah:

Cardinal Robert Sarah is currently the prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments and was appointed to that position by Pope Francis in 2014. Before that, he also occupied prominent positions during the papacies of Pope Benedict and Pope John Paul II.

Cardinal Sarah is known for being particularly outspoken in defending traditional Catholic teaching when it comes to issues such as abortion, sexuality, and Islamic radicalism. He has continuously promoted pre-Vatican II practices, such as having the priest face ad orientem in an effort to bring the focus of the Mass back toward the Eucharist. However, he also also encouraged that proponents of the different liturgies work together to find a middle ground.

Cardinal Sarah is also known for speaking up and being particularly critical of Western culture when most other prelates are silent. He places particular emphasis on the subjection of women, gender ideology, and he has stated that in general life in western society is organized as if God does not exist, which has led to a tremendous "silent apostasy".

Editorial Reviews

"This book shows Cardinal Sarah to be one of the most spiritually alert churchmen of our time."
--Bishop Robert Barron, Creator and Host,Catholicism film series

Cardinal Robert Sarah's profound exploration of the silence in which we hear the still, quiet voice of God, and thus come to know the truth about ourselves, is a powerful challenge to the cacophony of our times and a summons to a more Gospel-centered way of life."
--George Weigel, Distinguished Senior Fellow and William E. Simon Chair in Catholic Studies, Ethics and Public Policy Center


"Cardinal Sarah provides an incomparable help to contemporary man, so that he may practice the silence which is necessary to hear the voice of God and so to know himself and the world in their deepest truth, beauty, and goodness."
--Cardinal Raymond Burke, Author, Hope for the World

"Noise, as C.S. Lewis'devil Screwtape famously said, is the music of hell. Cardinal Sarah offers us a richly engaging, elegantly written reflection on the importance of recovering silence in our own lives, and through silence, rediscovering the presence of God, the beauty of creation, and the nature of our mission as disciples."
--Most Rev. Charles Chaput, Archbishop of Philadelphia

"Cardinal Robert Sarah has once again powerfully spoken a message desperately needing to be heard in our contemporary society. I pray that many will read this treasure chest of wisdom."
--Most Rev. Salvatore Cordileone, Archbishop of San Francisco

"It is impossible to exaggerate the importance of this profound, uniquely beautiful book."
--Michael D. O Brien, Author, Father Elijah: An Apocalypse

Customer Reviews

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M
Maria Gonnella-Traub
The Power of Silence

This book is a moving and life changing book if we think deeply about the majesty, yet deep humility and tender love of our God for us. The author helps us consider our own approach to God and how we might love Him.