By Daniella Zsupan-Jerome
In sacred art, we sometimes see icons of St. Benedict holding an open book, with the Latin words “ausculta” (listen) and “per venies” (you will arrive) on the two open pages.
Traditionally, these are the very first and very last words of The Rule of St. Benedict, a short document that describes the way of life in community for monastics. In a simple and profound way, put side by side, these words summarize the overall wisdom of this tradition, “Listen, and you will arrive.” Anything that is said in between points to this greater truth.
Listening is essential for community life. We know this is true in all social aspects of our lives: for good marriages, for healthy families, for functional work environments, for winning sports teams. We have heard this in our Church, too, especially in recent years of the Synod on Synodality, which described the Church particularly as “a listening Church” for this essential, reflective work of being present to the world today.
Listening matters for life and for faith. What does the Church teach about listening? Our theological tradition offers some fundamental insights.
- Listening as essential to faith.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church highlights listening as integral to our obedience of faith: “To obey (from the Latin ‘ob-audire,’ to ‘hear or listen to’) in faith is to submit freely to the word that has been heard” (CCC 144). This means that listening is essential to our ability to receive and respond to God’s Word, God’s self-gift to us in love. Our listening in this sense is an inner disposition of spirit, a hospitality we extend to God, a way of welcome to be in relationship with God. Because it is a way for us to enter into relationship with God, God desires our listening. Along these lines, we are invited at the Transfiguration: “This is my beloved Son, listen to him” (Matthew 17:5, Mark 9:7, Luke 9:35). We see this obedience in faith also echoed by the Blessed Mother at the Wedding at Cana: “Do whatever he tells you” (John 2:5). - Listening and life.
In the 2010 post-synodal exhortation “Verbum Domini” (“On the Word of God in the Life and Mission of the Church”), Pope Benedict XVI offers a profound extended reflection on God’s Word, and what it means for our faith, for the Church and for the broader world. In this document he teaches about listening not only as an internal movement of faith, but also as something fundamental for shaping how we live. “Listening to the word of God leads us first and foremost to value the need to live in accordance with this law ‘written on human hearts’” (9). Like the Catechism, Pope Benedict XVI also lifts up the example of Mary, who “also symbolizes openness to God and others; an active listening which interiorizes and assimilates, one in which the word becomes a way of life” (27). For Pope Benedict XVI, listening goes beyond our way of welcome to God’s Word. More than that, listening also forms us to live according to God’s Word. Listening draws us closer to God and deepens our potential for a godly life. When we listen, we welcome not only the Word but welcome our transformation by it. As Church, listening should transform us and move us to faithful action: “Listening with docility to the word of God in the Church awakens ‘charity and justice towards all, especially towards the poor’” (103). We live differently if we listen. - Listening and community.
In “Verbum Domini,” Pope Benedict XVI also connects listening to God’s Word to being a community of faith: “Listening to the word of God introduces and increases ecclesial communion with all those who walk by faith” (30). We see this as well with Pope Francis, who in 2022 dedicated that year’s World Communication’s Day Message to “Listening with the Ear of the Heart.” In this reflection he emphasizes the relational impact of listening: “Therefore, when seeking true communication, the first type of listening to be rediscovered is listening to oneself, to one’s truest needs, those inscribed in each person’s inmost being. And we can only start by listening to what makes us unique in creation: the desire to be in relationship with others and with the Other. We are not made to live like atoms, but together.” Listening is the avenue that brings us into authentic relationship with all that is beyond ourselves: others, the created world, God. Without the ability to listen, we turn inward in self-referential isolation. In contrast, when we listen, it is the pathway to others, to community and communion.
For the Church, the concept of listening captures the foundation for our inner response of faith to God, as well as the outward movement to others by way of a godly life. If we lead with listening, we will indeed arrive — arrive at a sense of communion with others and God.
Daniella Zsupan-Jerome is assistant professor of pastoral theology at Saint John’s School of Theology and Seminary.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church