“Seven Silences of Divine Communion” by Mary Sue Barnett ARCWP

Under the cobalt

blue skies of my Night

Watch, I give my breath

to You, Divine Child,

Who existed in the womb

of my soul before time

and space began

So deep the silence—

it is You that gives

Breath to me.

Wrapped in the gold

rays of my Awakening

Hour, I give my flesh

to You, Divine Word,

You Who were with me

before You were in me

So deep the silence—

it is You that gives

Flesh to me.

Distilled in the soft

yellows of my Blessing

Hour, I give my self

to You, Divine Friend,

You, where the infinite

meets the finite, in a spot

occupied by nothing

So deep the silence—

it is You that gives

Self to me.

Driven by the expanse

of light of my Illumination

Hour, I give my passion

to You, Divine Prophet,

You Who stretch and

strain the fabric

of my being, Your Love

relentlessly expanding

the universe

So deep the silence—

it is You that gives

Passion to me.

Held in the counsel

of abundance of my Wisdom

Hour, I give my thoughts

to You, Divine Wisdom,

You Whose canal becomes

a river, and Whose river

becomes a sea

So deep the silence—

it is You that gives

Thought to me.

Amidst the wonders

and strengths of my Twilight

Hour, I give my labor

to You, Holy Christa,

groaning You into

existence, my fabric tearing

as You push into the world

So deep the silence—

it is You that

Groans for me.

Held in the silken

dark night of my Great

Silence, I give my heart

to You, Divine Beloved,

yearning like lone

tracks in the snowy plains,

so to hold You in that

infinite place where

only love is known

So deep the silence—

it is You that

Yearns for me.

 This poem is co-written by Mary Sue Barnett (ARCWP) and friend JFS, with whom she has written several contemplative pieces. 

“Seven Silences of Divine Communion” arises from a deep longing to live into one’s infinity. 

The italicized words are titles for the Liturgy of the Hours by Macrina Wiederkehr in her book, Seven Sacred Pauses: Living Mindfully Through the Hours of the Day