Jesus' Voice in Fasted Silence and Attention

 Divine Appeal Reflection - 258

Today, consider in Divine Appeal 258: "I will also be speaking to you in the silence of your heart if you allow Me your attention and fasting."

There is a sacred silence known only to souls who have drawn near the Fire of the Eucharistic Heart — a silence not of absence, but of overwhelming Presence. In this Divine Appeal, Christ discloses a truth of eternal consequence: that He speaks most tenderly, most personally, in the quiet of the soul prepared through fasting and focused love (cf. CCC 2716, 2717; 1 Kgs 19:11–13). The soul must become like the tabernacle — still, surrendered, waiting — so that the Eternal Word may resound within (cf. CCC 2696). Priests who carry the weight of many souls must seek this silence with reverence, letting their hours before the Blessed Sacrament become a school of divine intimacy (cf. CCC 1566; Mt 6:6). Religious brothers and sisters are called to guard this silence as a sanctuary where their consecration is renewed daily (cf. CCC 931, 940). And even in the vocations of marriage and youth, where the rhythm of life pulses fast and loud, Christ pleads for hearts willing to pause, to fast — not only from food, but from the endless noise that drowns out His whisper (cf. Mk 6:31; CCC 2210, 2705). Only in silence can the Divine Friend reveal His secrets. Only in fasting does the soul grow sharp enough to discern them (cf. Mt 9:15; St. John of the Cross, Sayings of Light and Love, 54).

This fasting is not merely external abstinence — it is a spiritual nakedness, a dispossession of anything that clutters the soul’s gaze (cf. CCC 1430, 2043). The married mother rising early to pray before the house stirs, the young man deleting his social media to reclaim his interior life, the cloistered nun sacrificing even the comfort of routine for longer adoration — these are fasts that pierce Heaven (cf. Joel 2:12–13; Mt 6:17–18). The seminarian who renounces worldly ambition to make room for divine formation, the elderly widow who silently offers her loneliness in union with Christ’s desolation — they, too, fast with eternal fruit (cf. Lk 2:37; Phil 3:8). Christ’s Voice is not missing; it is muffled by inattentiveness. Attention is the golden thread upon which the divine Word descends (cf. CCC 2709; St. Teresa of Avila, Interior Castle, 4.1). And when one truly listens, Heaven breaks open. Divine direction, burning love, warnings, consolations, corrections — all flow in that silence which is not empty, but full of God (cf. Ps 46:10; CCC 2711). This is the ground where saints are formed.

But to receive this grace is to shoulder a responsibility as weighty as it is glorious. Those who are granted the gift of divine speech within their hearts must protect it, treasure it, and above all, use it well — not for self-satisfaction, but for the salvation of souls (cf. Mt 25:14–30; 1 Cor 9:16; CCC 2034). The priest must let it form his homilies, his confessions, his entire way of being alter Christus (cf. CCC 1548). The consecrated religious must embody that Word in hidden intercession and Eucharistic offering, radiating Christ to a world that does not see (cf. CCC 926; Col 3:3–4). Married couples must let it inform how they raise their children and sanctify their homes (cf. CCC 1657). Young adults must use it to resist the world's seduction and instead become living witnesses of divine fire (cf. Rom 12:1–2). Those given such a blessing must not squander it in complacency or pride, but guard it jealously — for it is a voice not given only for them, but through them for others (cf. CCC 2003; Lk 12:48). To misuse, neglect, or forget this grace is to let other souls remain in darkness who might otherwise have been guided by their faithfulness.

This invitation to silence is not merely personal, but ecclesial — it is a summons to all who are willing to cooperate in the redemption of the world (cf. CCC 618, 852; Col 1:24). It is the training ground of apostles, prophets, hidden victims, and true lovers of God. Here, the priest becomes anointed not by rhetoric, but by fire; the religious becomes fruitful not by activism, but by union; the married couple becomes an icon of Trinitarian love; and the young soul becomes a torch in the night (cf. CCC 1534, 1659, 2105; Mt 5:14–16). Christ is raising a generation of interior apostles — souls ablaze with silent communion (cf. St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Story of a Soul, Manuscript B). He is not looking for performers, but adorers; not strategists, but saints (cf. CCC 2715; Jn 4:23). These souls will be unknown on earth but renowned in Heaven. Let each one who hears this call know that Christ is not far — He waits in the silence, He speaks through the fasted heart, and to those who listen with trembling love, He entrusts His deepest desires (cf. Rev 3:20; 1 Sam 3:10). Such a grace must never be wasted — it must be safeguarded for the salvation of many (cf. Phil 2:12; Heb 2:1–3).

Prayer

Our Adorable Jesus, draw us into the silence where Your Heart speaks. Teach us to fast from distractions, to attend to Your voice with love, and to treasure Your whisper as fire. May we guard this grace faithfully, and use it to bring souls to the safety of Your merciful embrace. Amen.

Sr. Anna Ali of the Most Holy Eucharist, intercede for us.