What do we mean by silence? What is the difference between sound, noise and silence?

Sound is caused by the interaction of creatures. For example, a drop of rain falling into the pond makes a sound which is part of the rhythm of nature and does not disturb its silence. Noise denotes disarming of sounds such as the unrelenting sounds of a city which disturbs the silence of man's soul. Silence is achieved in nature when rest or union is achieved. The drops of water on the green leaf are at rest having achieved a relative stable union and silence.

Silence is the basic phenomena of existence. It is a primary objective reality which cannot be traced back to anything else except the Creator Himself. We find that Silence encompasses such basic realities as love, loyalty, death and life itself. Silence is present every moment of existence. Within this silence man is connected to all past and future generations. It encompasses the vastness of cosmic space as well as the empty space and rhythms of the atom. (The World of Silence, p.21) So silence, in the final analysis, does not mean the absence of movement and sound but encompasses sounds emanating from the rhythms of nature. This is why the rhythmic sound of the ebb and flow of the ocean tides tends to create silence in the soul. So, if all of creation is the reflection of the Creator, God must be Silence in the absolute sense of the word.

God is a spirit and as such not composed of parts that can create sound and the "movements" of spirit are not from one concept to another. "God lives in the eternal present, his knowledge transcends all movements of time and abides in the simplicity of its immediate present", (Boethius, The Consolation of Philosophy, Dover, Pubs, Inc., NY, p.106) in absolute silence. St. John tells us that the Word was with the Father from the beginning. God speaks only One Word and does not need multiplicity of words to express his eternal continuity of love for the Son in the Spirit. God loves through his One Word and His silence is not broken by speaking His Word. His word issues forth eternally in silence. It is a paradox that His absolute silence is simultaneously fullness of life.

2. Noise City in a Silent World