The Pilgrim's Rule
Chapter 6
The Ears of Obedience
Hearing the Voice of the Shepherd
My sheep hear my voice: and I know them, and they follow me.
The Creator fashioned every sense with admirable wisdom, yet no two are alike. The eye may close itself against the light, but the ear remains open even while the body sleeps. Day and night it stands ready to receive every sound that reaches it. It warns of approaching danger, delights in sacred music, learns the speech of parents, receives the instruction of teachers, and is often the first doorway through which knowledge enters the mind.
Thus God teaches another lesson.
Before man learns to speak, he must first learn to listen.
This order is no accident.
The child hears the voice of his mother long before he understands her words. He learns by attentive listening before he is capable of answering. In like manner, the soul must first become silent enough to hear the voice of God before it can faithfully respond to His will.
Sacred Scripture continually presents faith as something first received through hearing.
The prophets heard the word of the Lord.
The Apostles heard, "Follow Me."
Mary listened to the message of the Angel before she answered, "Be it done to me according to thy word."
The multitudes gathered to hear Christ teach before they witnessed His miracles.
Even today, the faithful first hear the Word of God before approaching His holy altar.
The ear therefore reminds us that the spiritual life begins not with speaking, but with listening.
Yet there are many voices in the world.
Some call man toward God.
Others call him away.
From the beginning, the history of salvation has been a history of competing voices. Eve listened to the serpent before she reached for the forbidden fruit. Adam listened to the voice of another before the command of God. Israel often turned its ear toward false prophets rather than the true messengers sent by the Lord. The ear receives long before the hand acts. Error often enters quietly before sin appears openly.
The Christian pilgrim must therefore learn not only to hear, but to discern.
A shepherd knows the sound of his own flock.
The sheep likewise learn the voice of their shepherd. They are not deceived by every stranger who calls them because long familiarity has taught them whom they may safely follow.
So it must be with the faithful soul.
The more frequently it listens to Sacred Scripture, to the perennial teaching of , to the wisdom of the saints, and to the quiet inspirations of , the more readily it recognizes whatever speaks with another spirit.
Discernment is seldom acquired in a single moment.
It is formed through faithful listening over many years.
There is another lesson hidden within the ear.
Hearing requires .
The man who believes he already knows everything soon ceases to listen. fills the mind with its own opinions until little room remains for instruction. , however, keeps the ear open. It gladly receives correction, welcomes wise counsel, and remains teachable before God.
How many souls have been preserved from grave error because they possessed the to listen.
How many have wandered because they preferred their own judgment above every other voice.
The ear also teaches .
Words unfold one after another.
No man can hear an entire conversation at once. He must wait for each sentence to be spoken before he understands the whole. Thus God often reveals His Providence little by little. He does not ordinarily unveil the entire road before the pilgrim begins his journey. He gives sufficient light for the next faithful step and asks the soul to trust Him for those that follow.
The world, by contrast, is filled with noise.
Every hour brings new opinions, new controversies, new distractions, and new demands upon the attention. Many fear silence because they have forgotten that silence is the guardian of listening. A heart constantly filled with noise rarely hears the gentle whisper by which God so often speaks.
For this reason the saints treasured .
They sought moments of holy silence, not because they despised the world, but because they desired to hear more clearly the voice of their Divine Master. They understood that the soul resembles a still lake. When the waters are calm, they reflect the heavens. When they are continually disturbed, even the brightest stars disappear from view.
The Christian pilgrim should therefore ask himself each day, "To whom have I been listening?"
Have I listened more attentively to the passing judgments of the world than to the eternal wisdom of God?
Have I welcomed more readily than truth?
Have I hurried to speak before I first listened with and ?
Have I allowed countless distractions to drown out the quiet invitations of ?
Such questions examine not merely the ears of the body, but the of the soul.
One day every earthly voice shall fall silent.
The conversations of this life shall cease.
The praises of men shall be forgotten.
The arguments of the world shall pass away like an echo in the mountains.
Yet one Voice shall remain forever.
It is the voice that called creation into being.
The voice that spoke through the prophets.
The voice that calmed the sea.
The voice that called Lazarus from the tomb.
The voice of the Good Shepherd, Who even now calls each pilgrim by name and leads him toward the everlasting fold.
Blessed is the pilgrim who has learned to recognize that Voice amidst the countless sounds of this passing world, for he shall one day hear the sweetest words ever spoken to the faithful servant:
"Well done, good and faithful servant... enter thou into the joy of thy Lord."
For Meditation
Spend a few moments today in deliberate silence before God. Let the noise of the world grow quiet, and ask yourself which voices most often shape your thoughts, your judgments, and your desires. The soul cannot follow the Shepherd if it has forgotten the sound of His voice.
Rule for the Pilgrim
Be swift to listen, slow to speak, and faithful to . The ear that has learned to recognize the voice of Christ will not easily be led astray by the passing voices of the world.