Dear Brothers and Sisters of St. Andrew the Apostle,
Next Tuesday, I will be joining a group of friends who are priests for vacation. We're meeting up in Wisconsin, as most of them are from the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. There will be fishing during the day, good food and good conversation at night, considerable rest, some cigars and whiskey, ... and most importantly daily Mass and prayer.
We enjoy getting away from the stress of our daily activities on weekends and vacations. It is necessary to step away from the busyness and stress of the day. It is good that we re-create ourselves and prepare to enter back into the activities of our lives rejuvenated and fulfilled.
That said, I am sure that you have had experiences like I have had when our time of rest does not leave us feeling rested - whether it be some free hours one evening, a day off, or even a whole vacation. That is because there is a difference between the absence of work and recreation. We can spend an hour watching television or exploring the internet and come away not feeling renewed. We see it as a reward at the time, but in the end, we feel empty.
Speaking of Sunday as a day of rest, Pope-emeritus Benedict XVI says, "[I]f leisure time lacks an inner focus, an overall sense of direction, then ultimately it becomes wasted time that neither strengthens nor builds us up. Leisure time requires a focus – the encounter with him who is our origin and goal. My great predecessor in the see of Munich and Freising, Cardinal Faulhaber, once put it like this: 'Give the soul its Sunday, give Sunday its soul.' "
For leisure to be renewing, it must be rooted in silence, contemplation, and God. True leisure is a participation in the goodness, beauty, and truth of God's creation. Thus we can see how activities that distract us from that, activities that engage our minds and bodies but do not draw us into the glory of creation will not restore us. I know I struggle with this myself. I like to fish, standing at the water's edge of beautiful rivers that cut their way through the forest, but often I do this while listening to podcasts or books on tape. I see it as multi-tasking, but all the while I am distracted from the beauty and silence that surrounds me and I prevent myself from truly contemplating the glory that surrounds me. On this upcoming vacation, I am going to keep my phone away from me and allow myself to be immersed in the glory that surrounds me.
Our Lord called his Apostles to go into the wilderness with him that they might find refreshment from their ministry. He calls to all of us, saying, "Come to me, all you who are burdened, and I will give you rest." This is something we must all remember and embrace, especially each Sunday when we remember how God rested after looking around at his creation and acknowledging its goodness. There is no greater place to experience this than at the Mass, where we listen to God's word, where we contemplate on his goodness, where we encounter Jesus in the Eucharist.
Let us come to appreciate all the glory that surrounds us, and allow it to draw us to our Triune God that he may restore us and make us new. It is difficult to do when the Evil One seeks to distract us and keep us busy so that our hands and minds go to and fro. Leisure takes work: making time for quiet and contemplation, making time for prayer. Yet when we do so, we find peace and freedom in the loving embrace of God.
Next week while I'm away, there will be no newsletter. Be assured of my prayers for you while I am away. I'm confident leaving you in the hands of Fr. Smith. While he is a new priest, he has uncommon maturity already, and is teaching me a few things! We are blessed to have him here. Please pray for us that we may minister to all of you in the way the Lord desires.
In Christ,
Fr. Wagner
