Pope Benedict XVI believes that in a noisy world of constant communication people need silence more than ever. He outlined his thoughts in his message for World Communications Day 2012, which is entitled "Silence and Word: Path of Evangelization." The Pope's letter was released Jan. 24 at the Vatican press office by Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli, head of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications.

"In silence, we are better able to listen to and understand ourselves; ideas come to birth and acquire depth; we understand with greater clarity what it is we want to say and what we expect from others; and we choose how to express ourselves," he says.

He also observes that silence can allow other people to express their thoughts. In this way "we avoid being tied simply to our own words and ideas without them being adequately tested," and therefore, "space is created for mutual listening, and deeper human relationships become possible."

Pope Benedict believes that this use of silence is "often more eloquent than a hasty answer," because it "permits seekers to reach into the depths of their being and open themselves to the path towards knowledge that God has inscribed in human hearts."

Silent contemplation also "immerses us in the source of that Love who directs us towards our neighbors so that we may feel their suffering and offer them the light of Christ, his message of life and his saving gift of the fullness of love," he writes