In between his bouts of storytelling among farmers or fishers, Jesus spent time alone, in silence, in secluded sanctuaries deep in canyons or mountains, deep in contemplation. There are more accounts of him finding quiet sanctuary than of him preaching or reaching into the synagogues.
His silent contemplation was essential to his preaching, healing & social justice work; they are two sides of the same coin. Could he have been a voice worth listening to if he did not go into retreat now & then? We may all need to do that far more frequently than we make time to do.
During Lent, I particularly feel compelled to fast from words, so you will not hear a peep out of me for the next week as I go into retreat where the desert mountains drain down to spacious flats. Farmers need to cultivate more than land; to be resilient, they need to cultivate the capacity to listen in silence to that land.
So I am pushing the pause button, to give all of us a break from more words. Adios.