General Instruction of the Roman Missal
Silence during Liturgy
“Any sort of haste that hinders recollection must b clearly avoided.”
Although scripture usually makes mention of vocal prayer and communal hymns when the people of God gather for worship, there are also various allusions to silence being appropriate at certain times associated with prayer. Reference to silence during the liturgy is also explicitly mentioned in the Second Vatican Council’s Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (no. 30), in the context of communal activities to foster active participation.
The General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM) mentions several locations where silence is appropriate, but also suggests that silence plays at least three different roles during the liturgy depending on when it is observed.
-- Silence helps recollection, particularly before the act of penitence at the beginning of Mass and after the invitations “Let us pray” to the major presidential prayers.
-- Silence helps reflection and meditation, especially after each of the scriptural readings or after the homily.
-- Silence helps personal prayer to our God, especially after the Communion procession.
The Introduction to the Lectionary and the 2002 GIRM also note that “any sort of hast that hinders recollection must be clearly avoided.” Thus, it is particularly appropriate to include silence during the Liturgy of the Word, so that “by the encouragement of the Holy Spirit, the Word of God may be grasped by the heart and a response may be prepared through prayer.” Thus, in addition to silence after the readings, it is also appropriate to include a moment of silence before the first reading is proclaimed.
Another appropriate place for silence in the course of the Mass is during the general intercessions (prayers of the faithful). Although most of the assembly joins in prayer for the announced intention by an audible response (such as “Lord, hear our prayer”) it is also permitted to respond by prayerful silence (GIRM no. 71). In many places, this silent “response” is the way the assembly participates in prayer during the solemn intercessions of Good Friday.
A period of prayer-filled silence before and after readings enable the Word to be heard more easily. Periods of liturgical silence are meant to be communal acts in which the assembly gathered together permits God’s whisper to be heard in the midst of the multiple voices of the “noisy” world we live in. In a society where we have become so accustomed to the noise of radios, TVs, CDs, cars and cell phones it is very difficult for some of us to become comfortable with silence and to focus on personal thoughts and the promptings of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes the only place that silence is socially acceptable is in a place of worship. Silence enables our loving God to speak to us, individually and communally, in words that speak to our hearts, words that invite us to draw nearer to him.
(Based on article by Dennis C. Smolarski, SJ, 2002. Made available by Office of Worship, Archdiocese of Detroit)
For more articles on the GIRM click WORSHIP.