Daily Signet

The power of silence is critical at this time of Advent. Dale Allison, a New Testament scholar, says: “Silence is not nothing. It is instead the divine liturgy leading to communion with God, the mute awe and reverence required by an encounter with the holy.” In Luminous Dusk, Allison tells of a legend from an old apocryphal gospel describing the moment when the Virgin Mary conceived:  

...a great silence descended with a great fear. For even the winds stopped, they made no breezes. There was no motion of tree leaves, nor sound of water. The streams did not flow, there was no motion of the sea. All things in the ocean were silent, and no human voice was heard.... Time almost stopped its measure. All, overwhelmed with great fear, kept silent.

As Dale Allison concludes from this legend, it would seem that just as “with the advent of God in the world, so too with the advent of God in our lives: silence is the only appropriate greeting.”

Alexis Drabek                                                                                                       

On This Day…

Christian St. Nicholas Day: St. Nicholas, 3C Bishop of Myra in France: known for his zeal and his healings, and as the basis of the modern Santa Claus

Ira Gershwin born 1896 in New York City: lyricist who wrote the words for his brother George’s songs, including those for several popular Broadway shows including; I Got Rhythm, Someone to Watch Over Me, Isn’t it Romantic and the great classic, Porgy and Bess. Died 8-17-1983
Quotes: “Old age adds to the respect due to virtue, but it takes nothing from the contempt inspired by vice; it whitens only the hair.” “Nice work if you can get it, and you can get it if you try.”