Silence is a major theme of The Chosen. It occurs in several instances, but most notably between Danny and his father: they only communicated during Talmud quizzes or angry explosions. Danny could never understand his father’s silence. If you have finished the book, you know it was in order to teach Danny compassion that Reb forced him to find the answers within his own soul.
How do these ideas fit with Christianity? Is such silence Biblical?
First of all, we cannot really find truth within ourselves. Only when we look to God can we find true answers to our questions. Looking into oneself alone reveals only confusion.
Secondly, the possible consequences are very serious. When a father refuses to have a relationship with his son, there is no reason why the son should respect him. The son could simply make his own choices, freely disregarding his silent father’s wishes. The soul of such a son would probably become a ruined wreck of anger and bitterness instead of a heart of compassion.
Thankfully, God does not treat us as Reb treated Danny. Rather than forbidding us from hearing His word and leaving us to our own devices, He gives us His truth as the ultimate point of reference and sent His Son to rescue us from ourselves and our own foolishness.
To Danny, Reb Saunders was an impersonal force, there to lay down rules, but not to love and encourage him. The God of Reb seems much the same: “The Master of the Universe,” but not a personal God with whom one may have a relationship. For the Christian, however, God is both. Although He is infinite, He is also a personal God. He has not remained silent, He has spoken to us. Furthermore, He offers us the opportunity to have a close, personal communion with Him through the reconciliation of His Son, Jesus Christ.
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