Silence is a way we can open our hearts to listen to God,'' said Francis Kelly Nemeck, a Catholic priest who has lived at the ranch, mostly in silence, for the past 25 years. The priest, who wears khaki pants and a cowboy hat, says visitors from as far away as Europe, Latin America and Australia are common at this silent place of retreat in the South Texas brush country. The name of the house of prayer is Lebh Shomea. The retreat is a place for people seeking silence and prayerful solitude. Guests at Lebh Shomea House of Prayer, who spend anywhere from a weekend to a year, don't speak during their time at the community.
Some people leave pretty quickly.
Quiet retreat Many come to Lebh Shomea to escape the noise of everyday living. The Bible said that Jesus always went off to some quiet place to pray. We have televisions, cars, street noise and stereos. Even e-mail is a form of quiet noise. Eventually, people reach a saturation point.'' The house of prayer gives guests a chance to walk dozens of nature trails over 1,000 acres, through brush country, live oak groves, swampland and along deserted beaches.