God truly wishes all to eat and drink deeply of Infinite Love. Alas, how few seek ardently and perseveringly to move beyond desiring only the things of this world that cannot satisfy the burning longing that has been placed in all human hearts to possess God's everlasting Love! ... It is possible for the contemplative to become so centered in the heart with the presence of the indwelling Christ that the thought and presence of the Beloved are always somewhere close to waking consciousness, even in sleep. Christ is operating, even in sleep, in dreams and in delicate movements of the heart, so that it can be said that such a contemplative never loses awareness of Love's presence, never stops "listening" to Love's voice.
Silence provides an atmosphere for prayer, and it preserves the growth that has been gained in prayer. People who begin to speak immediately after prayer in common, will not be able to preserve the fruits of their prayer. Their Recollection is dissipated, and they pour out all that has been accumulated within them. The observance of silence, on the other hand, allows the spirit of prayer to reverberate and take root in the heart.