My name is Michael K. Marsh. I am a priest of the Episcopal Church serving a parish in the Diocese of West Texas. Though my life is active I try to live contemplatively with silence, stillness, and occasionally solitude. I am drawn towards the desert, monasticism, and the patristic tradition of Orthodoxy. I seek to stand at the intersection of Episcopal breadth and Orthodox depth.
About the title, Interrupting the Silence. Father Thomas Keating says that silence is God’s first language. My life of prayer and study are attempts, through God’s grace and blessing, to become fluent in this language, to attain to hesychia. Who, then, am I to interrupt the silence, to interrupt God with my words?
I read somewhere that if our words will not contribute to the silence then we should say nothing. I offer my words, interrupting the silence, with the hope that somehow they might contribute to the silence. And when they do not I offer them as my confession with the hope of forgiveness.
The words I offer are my own, though not always original with me. They do not necessarily represent the views of the parish I serve, the Diocese of West Texas, the Episcopal Church, or any other group or organization.
God’s peace be with you,
Mike+
Feast of St. Antony 2009
Okay, way cool, dude! Very nice writing. It’s in my favorites now!
I found your blog through your comment on “Music in the Liturgy”. First of all, thank you for your thoughts and kind words. Your writing here is terrific. I will add you to my blogroll.
Fr. Christian: Thank you for your comment and placing me on your blogroll. I have enjoyed reading your blog.
Hello Father Mike… nice to make your online acquaintance. When were you in Sewanee? I was there from ’88 to ’93 (not as a student). Some of the best years of my life.
Many blessings,
Carl
Carl, I just recently found your blog and have enjoyed it. My wife and I were in Sewanee 2000-2003. It was a great experience for us. Like you we consider our time there some of the best years of our life. We miss Sewanee. I have been back for short visits a couple of times.
Peace, Mike+
Mike,
Really enjoying reading your blog posts. Keep up the good work.
cem
Thanks Earl. I appreciate your encouragement. Peace, Mike
Just saw the quote below and thought of your blog:
After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music.
– Aldous Huxley
To express the inexpressible is, I think, a deep human longing. Thank you for your thoughts and the beautiful quotation.
Is this just a blog or is it for those in a loose federation who seek a deeper introduction into the spirtual life?
Dan, in many ways the answer is to your question is “yes.” Yes, it is just a blog – my thoughts, questions, wonderings, and discoveries. And yes it is an introduction to the spiritual life – perhaps mine more than anyone else. If the blog somehow helps another in their own spiritual journey…Thanks be to God.
I find great comfort and help in my own journey through your words and presence here in bloggasphere! Thankyou. x
I am grateful for your encouraging words and appreciate your blog holding before us the Mystery and Journey.
Peace,
Mike+
Hi Mike,
I just found your blog by searching “diocese of west texas” congrats! The diocese will be setting up a blog page for communications during General Convention. We’re having fun testing a staff page right now.
Kelly, thanks for your comment. I am glad you found my blog. I look forward to following the DWTX blog during General Convention.
Great connecting with you today on Twitter. I love that I have been in your town and parish. Thank you for directing me to your excellent blog. Blessings! Fr. James
Found you through Networked Blogs on Facebook. I am seeking to deepen my spiritual life and find your posts very thought-provoking. I’m adding you to my blogroll.
Looking forward to reading more!
Erlinda, thank you for reading my blog and placing it on your blogroll. I appreciate your kind comment and look forward to hearing from you again. If you are ever in this area please stop by. Blessings on your journey. Mike+
Peace be with you. I linked to your video of Taize at the bottom of a recent post. I found my way here via “Liturgy, Worship, Spirituality”. I have you bookmarked now. Mine has been a long journey – and I expect it to be longer still. From depth to depth.
Peace be with you.
Thank you for following my blog. I have enjoyed reading yours as well. The endless journey from depth to depth….
Father Mike-
I just found your wonderful blog online. Thank you so much for all these wonderful prayers/thoughts/homilies/videos. I’ve saved this at the top of my favorites list.
My sincerest (belated) condolences to you and your family in your recent loss. My thoughts and prayers were with you and I’ve been keeping up through the St. Peters ” grapevine”.
-Sharon C.
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Sharon, thank you for your kind and thoughtful words. I am glad you found the blog. it is good to hear from you. Thank you also for your thoughts and prayers. Peace, Mike
Thank you for your Advent words -it fed me well in my journeying into Advent. I am trying to help my people enter into the experience of silence.This is a new journey for them. As a start this Advent, I am inviting them to join me in silent reflection in our prayer corner before we begin the service. I look forward to more of your reflections. Blessings and greetings from this little Australian corner of the world!
Robyn, thank you for reading my Advent post. I am glad you found it helpful. A great practice and gift to teach silence. I enjoyed looking at your parish site. Really like the prayer corner. May your and your parish’s Advent be blessed with holy silence. Peace, Mike+
Not sure how I stumbled across your blog but am really glad that I did. The thoughts and the videos were just what I needed at this crossroad in my life. I have realized that it is a matter of “Do the next right thing”, and have started the journey. Thank you so much.
Oh, if the name sounds remotely familiar, I worked at MD&A back in the 90s.
Thanks again – Jan
Jan I am glad you stumbled across my blog and I do remember you. Thank you for reading my blog and leaving a comment. May God bless and guide your journey. Peace and Christmas blessings, Mike+
Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment on my blog “O God, come to my assistance.”
Mike, for more than I year now I have been reading your blog. I am always encouraged and blessed by both the truth and the honesty that you hold forth. Generally your posts carry a depth that I am drawn to; a depth that is strangely beautiful; a depth that touches on the unfathomable depths of God. Yet again I realize just how very privileged I am to be called child of God; to taste d i v i n e d e p t h. Somehow, when reading your posts, I don’t feel so alone in wanting more of what is authentically from God. I do believe that there are many like me, whom God has touched through your “interrupting the silence”, who refrain from commenting for various reasons. Today I simply couldn’t ignore the compulsion within. THANK YOU from a sunny South Africa!
Find your blog a lovely respite in my busy world. I was
excited to see your comment on our blog. Thanks for your words and
prayers.
Mtr. Laurie, thanks for visiting my blog and your kind comment. I appreciate your words on Dirty Sexy Ministry and look forward to reading more.
Hi Mike, I just wanted to say that your words on blindness have touched me deeply. Seems that even though we are no longer at Sewnanee, you are still serving as my mentor! Thank you.
Thank you, Claudia, for your kind words. It is good to hear from you and I hope you are well. Peace be with you and blessings on your ministry.
From time to time I seek to “interrupt” my silence and solitude with the words that come through this site. Thank you, Father Mike for allowing the Word to express itself through you. Isn’t this what God did in the beginning? He interrupted the Eternal Silence to speak over the void?
Isn’t this what happened at the Annunciation when the Angel interrupted Mary’s life of silence in the Temple? Isn’t this what happened when at Midnight the Word lept into our midst as Jesus? Isn’t this what happens when there is a solitary, silent, still place where yearning calls forth newness to the Glory of God! At these moments of “epiphany” we are filled with awe and wonder at the marvelous works of God throughout history, as well as in our own lives! From true Silence comes the Word bursting with Light!. May this Word of God continue to inhabit the quiet still spaces of your soul, and burst forth with Light, for souls seeking the Light of Life: Christ Jesus manifested at Christmastide, as Emmanuel — God with us! Blessings all ways during this 2012, Father Mike!
Glad you’re interrupting the silence – you’ve found the beauty that’s on the other side of it.
Thank you for your encouragement. You remind me of the connection between beauty and silence.
Peace,
Mike+
“Beauty will save the world.” – Dostoevsky
When are the Orthodox going to ordain women and allow clergy to marry after ordination?
Fred, the Orthodox position on these two issues is deeply rooted in their understanding of the Tradition and I think it is unlikely that either will happen anytime soon. I am not aware that these questions are even being discussed.
Peace,
Mike+
So we can expect their nuns to start protesting this fact just like Catholics nuns are now? How about their priests getting married after their wives die-why can’t they do this? Why should Progressives support or admire groups that refuse to grant basic rights to their members, like allowing their clergy to marry or ordaining women? Is it enough to paint pretty pictures for mainline Protestants to admire people? Or do we just not care about the sufferings of Orthodox women like we do about Catholic women because we don’t have nearly as many of them in our social circles? I call that inconsistent, even hypocritical.
No doubt there are times when I have been “inconsistent, even hypocritical” with my words and actions. Forgive me if I have offended you. I am not sure what you are asking or wanting. While I do not hold the same position as the Orthodox concerning ordination of woman and clergy marriage I do find much in their theology that is of value and consistent with Anglican thought.
Peace be with you,
Mike+
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I enjoy reading your posts/reflections, Michael. Thank you for following. Pat Farrell
Sr. Pat, thank you for reading my blog. Likewise, I appreciate your blog.
Peace be with you,
Mike+