“What can I say to those people who, in the Church, neither stand in silence, nor join in the singing, but instead meet one another and mix our reasonable worship of God with worldly chatter?
They do not listen themselves to the divinely inspired words, and prevent others who want to listen from doing so. ‘How long do you halt between two opinions?’ as Elijah the Tishbite would say (I Kgs. 18:21). You want simultaneously to come together for prayer and for worldly, ill-timed words.
Of course you succeed in neither purpose, because you destroy the one with the other, or rather, they destroy each other. How long before you stop talking idly in this place? You make this house of prayer into a place of business or impassioned speech (cf. Lk. 19:46).
In this house the words of eternal life are both spoken and heard, on the one hand by us, as we beseech God for eternal life with unashamed hope, and on the other hand by God, as He gives eternal life to those who ask with their whole heart and mind. But He will not give it to those who do not even apply their whole tongue, as it were, to asking.”
St. Gregory Palamas
With such thoughts/actions in mind, please do your best with yourself and family to honor this important word from St. Gregory Palamas. Incredibly important action is occurring in our worship. But we must be able to hear and focus. Each of us knows how quickly we can ‘travel elsewhere in our minds losing focus.’ It is not easy to stay mindful of our worship yet needed.
At the very least do your best for the sake of your brother or sister in Christ, that they might be able to make and keep the church a place of prayer…..peace and decorum.
frwayne