The first word in the Rule of St. Benedict is “Listen.”  Not only listen, but he also writes, “listen with the ear of your heart.”  Benedictines have spent centuries attempting to accomplish that directive.  Benedict invites us to listen to God, to listen attentively to others and to listen to oneself.

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We know that obedience comes from the Latin word for listen.  So, we listen but also respond with a commitment to act on what we hear.  God speaks to us in the small whisperings of daily life.  “I should ask that person how she feels.”  So, I do it. “I need to pick up that piece of litter.”  So, I do it.  “I ought to spend an extra hour in prayer.”  So, I do it.

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Acting on what we hear, what God and others are telling us, what nature calls us to, what is in our hearts is truly listening.  Each day we are inundated with lots of words.  Many of them lead to nowhere.  When we listen with the ear of the heart, we are asking “What is God saying to me today?”