Page:Thecompleteascet01grimuoft.djvu/472

 the saints  fled  to  the  mountains,  to  caves,  and  to  deserts, in order  to  find  this  silence,  and  escape  the  tumults  of the  world,  in  which,  as  was  said  to  Elias,  God  is  not  found. Theodosius the  monk  observed  silence  for  thirty-five years. St. John  the  Silent,  who  gave  up  his  bishopric and became  a  monk,  observed  silence  for  forty-seven years before  his  death;  and  all  the  saints,  even  they  who were not  solitaries,  have  been  lovers  of  silence.

Oh, how  great  the  blessings  that  silence  brings  to  the soul! The prophet  says  that  silence  shall  cultivate  justice in  the  soul;  for,  on  the  one  hand,  it  saves  us  from a multitude  of  sins  by  destroying  the  root  of  disputes, of detractions,  of  resentments,  and  of  curiosity;  and  on the  other,  it  makes  us  acquire  many  virtues. How well does the  nun  practise  humility  who  when  others  speak listens with  modesty  and  in  silence! How well  does she practise  mortification  by  not  yielding  to  her  inclination or  desire  to  tell  a  certain  anecdote,  or  to  use  a  witty expression suggested  by  the  conversation! How well does she  practise  meekness  by  remaining  silent  when unjustly censured  or  offended! Hence the  same  holy prophet said:  In  silence  and  in  hope  shall  be  your  strength. Your strength  shall  be  in  silence  and  in  hope;  for  by silence  we  shun  the  occasions  of  sin,  and  by  hope  we obtain  the  divine  aid  to  lead  a  holy  life.

But, on  the  other  hand,  immense  evils  flow  from  speaking too  much. In the  first  place,  as  devotion  is  preserved by  silence,  so  it  is  lost  by  a  multitude  of  words. However recollected  the  soul  may  have  been  in  prayer, if it  afterwards  indulge  in  long  discourses  it  will  find the mind  as  distracted  and  dissipated  as  if  it  had  not made meditation. When the  mouth  of  the  burning  furnace is  opened  the  heat  soon  evaporates. St. Dorotheus