Skip to main contentAccessibility feedback

Dear catholic.com visitors: This website from Catholic Answers, with all its many resources, is the world's largest source of explanations for Catholic beliefs and practices. A fully independent, lay-run, 501(c)(3) ministry that receives no funding from the institutional Church, we rely entirely on the generosity of everyday people like you to keep this website going with trustworthy , fresh, and relevant content. If everyone visiting this month gave just $1, catholic.com would be fully funded for an entire year. Do you find catholic.com helpful? Please make a gift today. SPECIAL PROMOTION FOR NEW MONTHLY DONATIONS! Thank you and God bless.

Dear catholic.com visitors: This website from Catholic Answers, with all its many resources, is the world's largest source of explanations for Catholic beliefs and practices. A fully independent, lay-run, 501(c)(3) ministry that receives no funding from the institutional Church, we rely entirely on the generosity of everyday people like you to keep this website going with trustworthy , fresh, and relevant content. If everyone visiting this month gave just $1, catholic.com would be fully funded for an entire year. Do you find catholic.com helpful? Please make a gift today. SPECIAL PROMOTION FOR NEW MONTHLY DONATIONS! Thank you and God bless.

Background Image

Earbuds During Adoration

Question:

Can you listen to music with earbuds during adoration?

Answer:

I’m not aware of any Church regulation on wearing earbuds during adoration. But adoration chapels do have guidelines for chapel conduct, usually with a reminder to turn off cell phones (or place on silent/vibrate mode) and all electronic devices. This is to minimize distractions and to place the focus where it belongs: on Jesus and his presence. “Be still, and know that I am God,” says the psalmist (Psalm 56:10).

Why not unplug for an hour when you’re with the Lord? Sadly, we live in a culture of noise and distraction where earbuds, cell phones, and Muzak drown out the beauty of silence. In an address during a pastoral visit to Turin, John Paul II reminded us of the value of silence: “Our age needs to rediscover the fruitfulness of silence in order to overcome the dissipation of sounds, images, and chatter that too often prevent the voice of God from being heard.”

Recommended reading: The Power of Silence Against the Dictatorship of Noise by Cardinal Robert Sarah.

Did you like this content? Please help keep us ad-free
Enjoying this content?  Please support our mission!Donatewww.catholic.com/support-us