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We read at Mtt 5:1-2(KJV):

And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,...

The phrase 'he opened his mouth', unless it was part of the style of language of those days, gives one the impression that Jesus mostly kept quite (or say, kept his mouth shut).

We also read at Jn 19: 8-9:

Now when Pilate heard this, he was more afraid than ever. He entered his headquarters again and asked Jesus, “Where are you from?” But Jesus gave him no answer.

And during a stretch of three hours on the cross , Jesus spoke only seven small sentences !

That, along with the short sentences Jesus spoke when he really had to speak , leads one to the conclusion that he was a man of few words. My question therefore, is: Is there any official teaching from the side of Catholic Church which concludes that Jesus was a man of few words ?

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    The few words was only during his trials. – Perry Webb Nov 2 '20 at 10:09
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    And the Gospels are clearly condensed accounts of Jesus's life and ministry. You can read them in only a few hours each, so of course he said much more than was recorded! – curiousdannii♦ Nov 2 '20 at 11:33
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    Seven coherent, meaningful, memorable sentences is seven more than most people would say while being tortured to death. – DJClayworth Nov 2 '20 at 15:28
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    You have asked over 260 questions and accepted not a single answer as correct. Please consider accepting a few posts as correct! It may encourage others to answer your posts. – Ken Graham♦ Nov 2 '20 at 22:49
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    Unfortunately this is not a forum for dialogue, but rather a question and answer site, preferably for fact based responses. Certainly you already know this. And by the way, you are always welcome to answer your own questions. – Ken Graham♦ Nov 3 '20 at 4:51
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Was Jesus a man of few words, according to Catholic Church?

Our Lord Jesus often spoke with authority and the Jewish population saw that. A man of few words seems to always go unnoticed. Jesus was anything but that!

54 And coming into his own country, he taught them in their synagogues, so that they wondered and said: How came this man by this wisdom and miracles? 55 Is not this the carpenter's son? Is not his mother called Mary, and his brethren James, and Joseph, and Simon, and Jude: 56 And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence therefore hath he all these things? 57 And they were scandalized in his regard. But Jesus said to them: A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house. - Mattthew 13: 54-57

On the contrary, the foster-father of Our Lord, St. Joseph was definitely considered a man of few words. Not a single word of St. Joseph, a man of few words has been recorded in the Gospels, yet he is the Patron Saint of the Universal Church!

St. Joseph the universal patron of the church. St. Joseph, as the foster father of Jesus, is our spiritual father and head of the holy family. He was a silent saint, a man of few words. However, actions speak louder than words. We can reflect on his noble actions as he led his family and apply these lessons to our own families today.

Throughout his life, St. Joseph taught us the importance of a man’s role in marriage and parenting. It is scary to think what could have happened to Mary and Jesus had it not been for St. Joseph. Mary could have been stoned to death since she became pregnant out of wedlock, but St. Joseph fearlessly stood beside Mary and protected her and the beautiful life in her womb. St. Joseph taught his family what perfect love and obedience look like by fearlessly keeping his heart open to God’s direction for his life.

St. Joseph and Mary were the first teachers for Jesus. They perfected their “school of love,” or “Schola Amoris” by living out their lives in union with God’s plan. We, too, are called to be the first teachers for our children. St. Joseph serves as one of our models as we teach our children and nurture their spiritual development by embracing God’s plan for our lives and being aware of our actions, not just our words. - Joseph: a man of few words

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  • Luke 2 : 48 says " When His parents saw Him, they were astonished. “Child, why have you done this to us? His mother asked. “ Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you. " Joseph would have asked a thousand passersby : '' Did you see a lonely child of twelve years with a calm face and divine expressions ? Please help me find him " – Kadalikatt Joseph Sibichan Nov 3 '20 at 4:56
  • @KadalikattJosephSibichan Yet not a word of his is recorded in Scriptures. Was it Mary or Joseph that posed these questions. Joseph would have asked a thousand passersby : '' Did you see a lonely child of twelve years with a calm face and divine expressions ? Please help me find him " You put these words in Joseph’s mouth as quotations, but Scriptures quoted no words of St. Joseph! Tradition holds that St. Joseph was a silent witness of Christ’s Divinity. The question in ultimately is about Jesus being a man of few words!!! – Ken Graham♦ Nov 3 '20 at 5:00
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I'm really sorry, I would prefer to leave this as a comment, as I do not have an answer, but I do not have enough reputation to leave comments yet.

But the question brings to mind the following verses which paint a pretty consistent picture to me.

Jesus answered, "My teaching is not my own. It comes from him who sent me. If anyone chooses to do God's will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own." [John 7:6]

"I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you." [John 16:12-15]

"But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you." [Matthew 10:19-20]

"The Lord said, "Go out and stand by on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by." Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake, After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. [1 Kings 19:11-12]

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  • The John 16 verse seems to pretty conclusively refute the idea that Jesus didn't talk much (especially as it comes in the middle of one of Jesus's longest dialogues), is that what you meant? – curiousdannii♦ Nov 3 '20 at 3:27
  • I'm not sure if I agree with that, since that was his farewell discourse, the last of his earthly teachings before his passion and is absolutely unique in that sense, including perhaps the amount of spoken teaching he does in that moment. but I have to reflect more on what I mean. thank you for engaging – Samantha Y Nov 3 '20 at 17:54

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