The Importance of Listening

This evening, with a colleague, I walked into Southwark Cathedral. We were on our way to dinner after a day in the office at The Shard, and I asked whether they had ever been inside the building. They hadn’t, so we went to see the architecture.

As we entered the courtyard, I saw on the schedule that evening prayer was just about starting. We went in to listen to the choir.

It turned out that they were still rehearsing. Instantly, we were swept up into Byrd’s magnificent harmonies (if you know, you know). We got to speak with one of the lay clerks before the service started. He explained their roles and how the different choirs supported different services. Everyone has their part to play (and sing).

Before the service started, we were ushered up to sit in the choir stalls. The acoustics were epic.

The evening’s reading was from Luke 10:38-42. It is about listening, and prioritising the important thing(s):

“As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.””

‭‭Luke‬ ‭10‬:‭38‬-‭42‬ ‭NIV‬‬

https://bible.com/bible/111/luk.10.38-42.NIV

The preacher delivered an impactful dramatisation of the gospel reading. They used a tea towel to great effect, and my colleague initially thought they were genuinely angry when they acted as Martha from the story above. (They were not wearing their robes, but a Hawaiian shirt and chinos. Very incognito, with an air of mystery.)

The importance of listening

This weekend just gone, I went to my friends’ wedding in Ireland. I had taken a few days off after attending a conference, and was struggling to rest and disconnect from the world.

I went out for a walk on Saturday morning, before the wedding celebrations scheduled for later that day. There were a lot of tourists, making lots of noise. (I know that I was one of them, but I was trying to be quiet in a beautiful, monastic space.)

What happened next changed me. I switched my phone off on my walk, and tuned in to what was going on around me.

I listened.

Today forms for some, in the Christian calendar, part of ‘Holy Week’. It is the few days leading up to Easter, when we remember that Jesus Christ rose from the dead.

This is the same Jesus who said to Martha in the story read at Southwark Cathedral, that her sister Mary had chosen a better part. A better part of what?

A better part of life.

There will always be dishes to wash. There will always be emails to send. There will always be mouths to feed and people who ‘need’ you.

When do you take time to listen?

To pause?

To breathe?

To think?

To pray, maybe? Or to meditate?

I wrote a poem after my experience in Glendalough, Ireland on Saturday. I’ve included it here.

Maybe you could take some time this Holy Week and Easter to make it a proper holiday. Take time to rest, and to listen. You may be surprised in what you hear.

Celtic Bridge in Glendalough

Standing on the bridge

In Glendalough,

I had my headphones on.

Trying to block out the tourists,

I spotted a small bird.

It sat upon a rock far off,

Perched amid the stream.

There were children playing

And the parents spoke and laughed

With the children’s grandfather.

I realised, while looking at the bird,

That the sound of children’s laughter

Is a hymn of praise to God.

I took my headphones off,

Listened to the shrill, and then

The bird flew off:

The same bird on a different rock.

Then I myself moved on as well,

And saw a dormouse in a bank.

I looked up and I saw my friends,

Walking down towards me.

Would I have seen them,

If I’d kept my headphones on?

The bird moved on, and so did I.

The same me, beneath the trees.

Image description: Southwark Cathedral, 14th April, 2025 - Holy Week; taken by the author.