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“Only those who have experienced it know the benefits and divine bliss that solitude and silence in the wilderness bring to those who love them.” (Saint Bruno, the Carthusian)
While these words certainly apply first and foremost to those who follow the call to solitude in order to serve the Lord there and dwell in His presence, they are also words that can be adapted to other circumstances in life.
How deeply a church can touch the soul within and draw it toward God when the Blessed Sacrament is present and everyone conducts themselves in a manner befitting the sanctity of the place! Or let us think of the sacred “silence of the Canon” during the Tridentine Mass or the quiet contemplation before the tabernacle.
These are all invitations to withdraw from the noisy outside world and allow the soul to encounter God more deeply. God will thank us by bestowing “divine delight” upon the soul, as St. Bruno describes it.
If we cultivate this, then the Spirit of the Lord will teach us to seek silence again and again in one way or another. The soul itself will long for it.
The search for solitude is also important for the apostolic life so that we may carry out our ministry with renewed strength. The Church recognizes the value of this solitude into which hermits and contemplative religious retreat. Through intimate union with our Heavenly Father, they open the gates wide to God’s grace, which then reaches people through their ministry and leads them to the true faith.