Try this Retreat!

From the desk of Fr. Ignatius Waters, cp

Sunday, 16th September 2018

Have you ever made a retreat? Maybe at times you thought of it. Maybe at times, you long to get away from all the depressing news. Even the recent World Meeting of Families and the joy of Pope Francis’ visit was hijacked by other and varied agendas. But maybe too, despite your longing, you just haven’t had the time or the opportunity. Don’t worry – here’s a five-day retreat in five sentences. (With thanks to Richard Rohr!) This is a retreat you can do at home.

Day 1           Life is Tough.  Life is tough for everyone. Life breaks everyone in some way. As long as we’re alive, we’ll have troubles. It’s a sign of life! Why can’t I just accept that? Why do I continue to be shocked when troubles come my way?

Day 2           You’re going to die. Nothing surer!  Everyone that has ever lived has died.  So, don’t be so anxious about your health or your cholesterol!  Being less anxious will help your health.

Day 3           You’re not that important! Of course, you’re important – you’re a child of God, you have a high destiny – but you’re not that important in the scheme of things. People have walked this earth for 50,000 years, some say for 200,000 years – so stop taking yourself or your life or your big job or anything too seriously!

Day 4           You’re not in control of everything!  Maybe you’d like to be, and there are control freaks around who try to be. But so much in life is out of our hands; so much we cannot control or anticipate.

Day 5           Your life is not all about you!  Of course, it’s about you, it’s your life, the only one you have and it’s not a rehearsal but it’s not all about you. It’s about other people as well – all the network of relationships in family and neighbourhood and society. We’re part of something greater, we’re part of the ocean of life, we’re part of God and because of that, even though we may crash like waves on the shore, we can reform and begin again.

Maybe all this talk annoys you, puzzles you or confuses you? You would probably need to take the whole five days to understand it – and certainly a lifetime to live it!  But try it. Work with these statements; bring them to your prayer. Repeat them (or some of them!) to yourself every new day.  They can help.  They can be freeing in so many ways.