The Art of Manliness
Silence, Solitude, Stillness: The Spiritual Disciplines We Need in a Noisy World
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Show notes
We live in a world of pervasive noise. Even when we're alone and our surroundings are quiet, our devices bombard us with an endless stream of inputs — messages, news, opinions, entertainment — and we feel constantly connected.
My guest argues that this lack of both silence and solitude isn't just generating stress and fragmenting our attention, but doing real damage to our souls.
His name is John Mark Comer, and he’s a pastor and the author of Into the Quiet. Today on the show, we discuss what noise is doing to the deepest parts of us and how engaging in silence and solitude can help us cultivate inner stillness. We explore the monastic tradition behind these spiritual disciplines, why engaging in them can sometimes feel like a negative experience, and what happens when all our usual distractions disappear. We also get into simple ways to bring more quiet into everyday life.
After the show’s over, check out the show notes at aom.is/silence.
Resources Related to the Podcast
- Get the Book: Into the Quiet
- John Mark's previous appearance on the AoM podcast: Episode #1,013 — Practicing Spiritual Disciplines as an Act of Resistance
- John Mark's Previous Book: Practicing the Way
- AoM Article: The Spiritual Disciplines — Solitude and Silence
- Clear Creek Abbey in OK
- New Camaldoli Hermitage in Big Sur
- A Time to Keep Silence by Patrick Leigh Fermor
Connect With John Mark Comer
0:00 Introduction
1:33 What Prompted "Into the Quiet"
5:42 Soundless Noise in the Digital Age
7:39 What Noise Does to Our Souls
11:02 Loneliness vs. Solitude
13:57 Cultivating Inner Stillness
19:02 The Eremos: Jesus' Practice of Solitude
23:58 The Desert Fathers & Monastic Tradition
29:06 What Happens in the Silence
39:17 Confronting Inner Demons in Solitude
47:36 Practical Ways to Practice Silence & Solitude
51:47 Outro
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