--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Silence is a very concrete, practical…" description: "\"Silence is a very concrete, practical, and useful discipline in all our ministerial tasks. It can be seen as a portable cell taken with us from the sol..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe4/henri-nouwen-600_action_silence-is-a-very-concrete-practical-and_2337380.png" --- # Silence is a very concrete, practical, and useful… ![“Silence is a very concrete, practical, and useful discipline in all our ministerial tasks. It can be seen as a portable cell taken with us from the solitary place into the midst of our ministry. Silence is solitude practiced in action.” quote by Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe4/henri-nouwen-600_action_silence-is-a-very-concrete-practical-and_2337380.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe4/henri-nouwen-600_action_silence-is-a-very-concrete-practical-and_2337380.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe4/henri-nouwen-600_action_silence-is-a-very-concrete-practical-and_2337380.png) > “Silence is a very concrete, practical, and useful discipline in all our ministerial tasks. It can be seen as a portable cell taken with us from the solitary place into the midst of our ministry. Silence is solitude practiced in action.” [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Silence is a purposeful practice that brings inner stillness into active service, allowing deeper presence and discernment. **In simple terms:** Silence helps us stay present while working. Key Takeaway Cultivate quiet moments during duties. Themes spirituality mindfulness service solitude Mood calm reflective Type spiritual practical When to use this quote - pastoral counseling - teaching - personal prayer - leadership meetings Key Concepts contemplation presence discernment Questions to Reflect On - How can you integrate silence into a busy day? - What does “solitude practiced in action” mean for you? A Different Perspective Silence can be hard to maintain amid constant distractions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Action](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/action/) [Discipline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discipline/) [Ministry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ministry/) [Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence/) [Solitary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/solitary/) [Solitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/solitude/) ## Related quotes > [Solitude well practiced will break the power of busyness, haste, isolation, & loneliness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallas-willard/solitude-well-practiced-will-break-the-power-of-busyness-haste-2/) [Dallas Willard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallas-willard/) > [“Solitude well practiced will break the power of busyness, haste, isolation, and loneliness. You will see that the world is not on your shoulders…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallas-willard/solitude-well-practiced-will-break-the-power-of-busyness-haste/) [Dallas Willard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallas-willard/) > [As ministers our greatest temptation is toward too many words. They weaken our faith and make us lukewarm. But silence is a sacred discipline,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/as-ministers-our-greatest-temptation-is-toward-too-many-words-they/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [The mystery of ministry is that we have been chosen to make our own limited and very conditional love the gateway for the unlimited…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/the-mystery-of-ministry-is-that-we-have-been-chosen-to-make-our-own-2/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Ministry in no way is a privilege...it is the core of the Christian life. No Christian is a Christian without being a minister.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/ministry-in-no-way-is-a-privilege-it-is-the-core-of-the-christian/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Solitude, community, and ministry are certainly not just for celibates! Celibates also have a hard time keeping up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/solitude-community-and-ministry-are-certainly-not-just-for-celibates/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Ministry is a very confronting service. It does not allow people to live with illusions of immortality and wholeness. It keeps reminding others that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/ministry-is-a-very-confronting-service-it-does-not-allow-people-to/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Too many of us are lonely ministers practicing a lonely ministry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/too-many-of-us-are-lonely-ministers-practicing-a-lonely-ministry/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [“I was terrified as only grown men and women can be when they wake up in the middle of the night and begin to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-ageyev/i-was-terrified-as-only-grown-men-and-women-can-be-when-they-wake-up/) [M. Ageyev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-ageyev/) > [It is really a matter of ending this silence and solitude, of breathing and stretching one's arms again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rothko/it-is-really-a-matter-of-ending-this-silence-and-solitude-of/) [Mark Rothko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rothko/) > [The heart beats louder and the soul hears quicker in silence and solitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-phillips/the-heart-beats-louder-and-the-soul-hears-quicker-in-silence-and/) [Wendell Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-phillips/) > [“Few of us can fully appreciate the terrible con­spiracy of noise there is about us, noise that denies us the silence and solitude we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-macdonald/few-of-us-can-fully-appreciate-the-terrible-con-spiracy-of-noise/) [Gordon MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-macdonald/) > [Seriously, I think it is a grave fault in life that so much time is wasted in social matters, because it not only takes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/seriously-i-think-it-is-a-grave-fault-in-life-that-so-much-time-is/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [There is an old proverb to the effect that 'all those who open their mouths, close their eyes!' The purpose of silence and solitude…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-j-foster/there-is-an-old-proverb-to-the-effect-that-all-those-who-open-their/) [Richard J. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-j-foster/) > [Silence and solitude are more distracting to me than chatter and commotion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilu-henner/silence-and-solitude-are-more-distracting-to-me-than-chatter-and/) [Marilu Henner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilu-henner/) ## More by Henri Nouwen > [We are not the healers, we are not the reconcilers, we are not the givers of life. We are sinful, broken, vulnerable people who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/we-are-not-the-healers-we-are-not-the-reconcilers-we-are-not-the/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [The more we touch the intimate love of God which creates, sustains, and guides us, the more we recognize the multitude of fruits that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/the-more-we-touch-the-intimate-love-of-god-which-creates-sustains-and/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Feelings of guilt dominate our work as peacemakers we cannot last long. But when we have opened each other's eyes to the great human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/feelings-of-guilt-dominate-our-work-as-peacemakers-we-cannot-last/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [...we all want to hear stories, from the moment we are born to the moment we die. Stories connect our little lives with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/we-all-want-to-hear-stories-from-the-moment-we-are-born-to-the-moment/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [I have found it very important...to let go of my wishes and start hoping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/i-have-found-it-very-important-to-let-go-of-my-wishes-and-start-hoping/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Simply being with someone is difficult because it asks of us that we share in the other's vulnerability, enter with him or her into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/simply-being-with-someone-is-difficult-because-it-asks-of-us-that-we/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Somewhere we know that without silence, words lose their meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/somewhere-we-know-that-without-silence-words-lose-their-meaning/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Jesus says, "Keep your heart on the kingdom first. Keep your heart on God's love. Keep focused on the fact that you are God's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/jesus-says-keep-your-heart-on-the-kingdom-first-keep-your-heart-on/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [This sounds very simple and maybe even trite, but very few people know that they are loved without condition or limits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/this-sounds-very-simple-and-maybe-even-trite-but-very-few-people-know/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [“The more preoccupied we are with security the more visible the force of death becomes, whether in the form of a pistol beside our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/the-more-preoccupied-we-are-with-security-the-more-visible-the-force/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [If you feel a great loneliness and a deep longing for human contact, you have to be extremely discerning...and ask yourself whether this situation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/if-you-feel-a-great-loneliness-and-a-deep-longing-for-human-contact/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [I choose L'Arche; L'Arche chooses me. I would be dead if I weren't here. I need people to love me and care for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/i-choose-l-arche-l-arche-chooses-me-i-would-be-dead-if-i-weren-t-here/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [The truth, even though I cannot feel it right now, is that I am the chosen child of God, precious in God's eyes, called…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/the-truth-even-though-i-cannot-feel-it-right-now-is-that-i-am-the/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [In a world so torn apart by rivalry, anger, and hatred, we have the privileged vocation to be living signs of a love that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/in-a-world-so-torn-apart-by-rivalry-anger-and-hatred-we-have-the/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Where true inner freedom is, there is God. 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