Listening For God: A Minister's Journey Through Silence And Doubt

by Renita J. Weems

Throughout the past two decades, Renita J. Weems has been noted and praised for her writing, galvanizing national speaking, and pioneering scholarship in the field of Old Testament studies. Yet in the midst of her celebrated work, she was experiencing a profound spiritual crisis permeated by a hollow, painful silence that seemed, at times, to mark an irreparable rupture in her communication with God.

In this deeply affecting book, Weems addresses the believer's yearning for God through periods of inconstancy, vacillation, and disenchantment. Her own spiritual disquietude will be familiar to all who struggle to maintain faith while the details of daily life -- negotiating with children and spouses, caring for ailing parents, living up to professional expectations, developing hobbies, managing finances, and planning for the future -- compete for energy with one's relationship with God. In sharing her own strategies for redefining mundane rituals so that they contribute to reverence and devotion, Weems offers a beacon of light for all believers struggling to listen for God amidst the din of worldly demands and distractions.

Genres: Religion, Spirituality, Theology, Memoir, Faith, Christian, Christianity

208 pages, Paperback

First published March 19, 1999

About the author

Renowned Hebrew Bible scholar, academic administrator, ordained minister, and womanist wisdom griot. Her work in biblical studies is frequently cited in feminist theology and womanist theology.

Reviews

[Courtney · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read this book in bits and pieces multiple times. I've read it from cover to cover twice. Each time, I walk away with a deeper sense of understanding and a deeper appreciation for the beauty of humanity. Sunday I preached a sermon that emphasized heavily how God speaks through silence. And today, as I finished the final part of this book again, I wished I'd have half as eloquent as Dr. Weems is when she speaks of God's silence.

This book has helped me to reflect greatly on my own life and ministry journey, even more now that I am in a leadership role in church, a mother, a person who formerly attempted to make a marriage work. In many instances I found myself simply happy to know that I am not alone in the experiences I have. The experiences of not knowing what to say, or wanting to be left alone, or not feeling confident in what I'm doing, or not knowing why I'm doing it at all.

The beauty of the subject is only highlighted by the beauty of the prose. This is a book I will return to again and again and again, and I don't know that it will ever get old. I will continue to find new wisdom, new comfort, and new help in these pages.

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was easy to read but not necessarily easy to relate to for me in many ways. As one of God's "frozen chosen" I don't think I ever expected the kind of religious ecstasy that Rev. Weems was brought up to count as the norm (in a Pentecostal tradition). However, I think many of us do go through periods of spiritual dryness, in whatever way we think of it, and I tend to agree with her way of handling it - by just keeping on showing up, doing the practices, and remaining open to the holy. In college I had a roommate who was Reform Jewish, and she had a saying she had learned, "We will do, and we will hear." Notice that the doing comes first. I need to remember that saying often, and Rev. Weems' book expands on it in a Christian context.

[Rae Lewis-Thornton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ever feel as if God is silent? You are not along, mister and Biblical scholar Rentia Weems takes us through her powerful journey of silence with God. I loved this book because it helped me to see that I am not along in this Christian journey. That sometimes we doubt but that there is light at the end of the tunnel... Her honestly was refreshing.

[Martha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book about five years ago and am re-reading it as part of a RevGalBlogPals discussion. It gives me a sense of how far I've come in the past five years, and I am also finding new insights. Weems writes about her own silent periods, the times when God seemed to be incommunicado. I've been there, too. She weaves stories of work and family history and her present life (as of the writing of the book). She is a very good writer, engaging and challenging.

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I took so many pictures of pages I wanted to underline but couldn't (library book). Loved this honest and authentic story of a minister's wrestling. Renita gets a space on the "speaks to my soul shelf" with Anne and Madeleine.

[TJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really good book with honest insight into what it means to be struggling with faith and with God. Very moving and helpful

[Christopher Gow · Rating 5 out of 5]

Profound while also really unpretentious —
One of those great, wise, memoirish books (think Eugene Peterson) that make you want to be more honest and good.

[James Wheeler · Rating 3 out of 5]

A black, female, old testament prof. who teaches at Vanderbilt shares about her spiritual journey as it moves to an older, less experiential and more contemplative mode. This can be disorienting for aging Christians, especially if attending "happy clappy" churches. The book focuses on the dry winter of the soul. Does the dry winter mean all the positive feelings from early days are exposed as illegitimate? She addresses this question.

She is influenced by spiritual writers like Buechner, L'Engle and Berryman among others. I found a number of her statements to be encouraging, especially in this disorienting time of Trumpism, Covid denial and rampant conspiracy theories. Imo, we need more spiritual memoirs that explore questions of faith formation with an appreciation for minority voices in biblical scholarship and faith life. This adds alot of depth to her reflections.

"We're probably the first generation of both clergy and laity to lift our spiritual emptiness to an existential dilemma. We clamor for glimpses of God as though we were actually suitable to have dealings with God."
173

[Elizabeth]

This book is a quick, easy read, but I didn't feel like I got a whole lot out of it.

The first third or so I found fairly repetitive -- one goes through fallow periods, continuing to go through the motions is valuable, being honest about what you're (not) feeling is valuable, etc.

And the remainder felt somewhat scattershot -- various vignettes from her life that didn't always have clear takeaways or felt like they could have been developed more (especially after we spent sixty-some pages on fallow periods and God's silence, to breeze through Sabbath, ritual, the value of showing up, etc. in only a few pages each felt odd) and the stories got increasingly autobiographical without much sense to me of why this particular life story was in this particular book. I frequently reminded myself of the title ("listening for God") as the through-thread, but I wanted the text to do more of the work.

[Kimberly]

I really LOVE the author's blog....very progressive, Black, Female, Christian thinking. However, i just couldn't finish reading this book. I think perhaps because its so personal to her, i couldn't really apply anything to myself. I will give one of her other, more objective books a try.

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the first section of the book, Weems is trying to hard to find spiritual lessons, but in the later part of the book she lets her own voice come through much more as she recounts her own thoughts and experiences. I was more interested in her personal story, than in any theological message.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

An honest look at times of doubt and silence in our faith lives. Some powerful vignettes from her own life.

[Cathy]

did not finish - I felt it was a book that I needed to read at a different time.

[Hillary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fantastically honest read about the struggles to be connected to God!

[Linda Stoner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very thought provoking!

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this, particularly at the time in which I read it. Open, honest and grace filled book!

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Expresses some of the deepest sentiments of my heart when I lack the words.

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty writing and insights.

[Valerie H Hobbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read and re-read this when I'm at a low point. A lovely, meditative set of honest reflections from a deeply wise Christian leader.

[Scott Ward · Rating 5 out of 5]

Weems gives us an honest, vulnerable peek into her heart and understanding of the relationship with the Creator. Set up in sections that you could use as a devotional or meditative essay, it’s easy to read while being encouraging, challenging, insightful for people of all faith maturities. Readers who have experienced a desert in their faith walk, where either they felt God wasn’t speaking or they didn’t feel like talking to or listening to God, they will quickly empathize and learn from the author.

Periods of doubt and silence—those desert times—are perfectly normal. And, given the example of Thomas with Jesus, who provided exactly what Thomas needed to believe, we can trust that God won’t leave us there if we don’t want to stay. Weems has at least one example of what the relationship might look like in these times: a kid on timeout while the adult waits for him/her to settle themselves, regain control and willing to rejoin the family, e.g. I also appreciated her boldness at times: “I don’t talk to people who don’t talk to me” as an example of her reluctance to pray.

This book spoke to me regarding those quiet times when it feels like God’s not listening. I remember a time he answered 3 prayers I had offered for others in the space of week—right after I had accused Him of ignoring me. And then I ‘whined’ to Him, “But what about answering my requests for things I want?” Weems’ book describes her own times and gives us ways to rejoin the dialogue with Him.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful story about a female minister's struggle with faith. Extremely relatable and highly recommend.

This book was just what I needed. My relationship with God was struggling (AKA I couldn't hear Him) and this book came to me at just the right time. It helped me come to a number of realizations, some I already knew but for whatever reason could not internalize:
1, People go through this struggle a lot
2, It wasn't Him not communicating, it was me not listening
3, Resentment and anger was a cause of this rift
4, It's fine to both resent and love God at the same time

[Monica Leak · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had the privilege of meeting the author at a conference and this book was one of the book selections for review for my supervised ministry courses. It raised questions about perception of circumstances, the inner conflicts of fear and self doubt, facing challenges, remembering and how we deal with relationships within those changes of seasons. This is definitely one that I will go back to.

[Susan Frazier-Kouassi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although she is writing more from a minister's perspective - much of what she says can apply to all as we go through the seasons of our life and our communication with God.

[Jlnelso · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once of the best Christian books I've read in a long time. She's an honest, deep, and beautiful writer.

[Falala5 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exactly what I needed when I needed it.

[Mimi Ivy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This text was one of my first introductions to a womanist’s writings. I love Weems’ vulnerability and honesty here.

[Lindsay · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the book! Refreshingly honest. A great companion for the doubters, the questioners, the hangers-on.