Diocese of Toledo, Ohio

Browsing From the Pastor

The Offer of a Summer Spiritual Check-Up

   This is the time of year when many of us plan for vacation. Among the preparations that we make, a number of us arrange to have the vehicle in which we are to travel serviced. Our car, van, or truck may already be running smoothly. By having our vehicle properly checked out, we can significantly reduce the likelihood of it breaking down while we are away from home.  

   The upcoming summer season offers both opportunities and risks. On the one hand, we have more time to spend with our families and with persons whom we don’t see all that often. There are also opportunities to visit places near and far that we simply don’t have time to see during much of the year.

   Among the risks that come with the summer season is the inclination to slack off in a number of ways. Perhaps we avoid getting the exercise for which we make room during much of the year. We can become careless in terms of our diet. It can be tempting to skip coming to Mass on weekends and to put daily prayer on the back burner. Some of us tend to overbook ourselves. There is so much that we want to do within the brief span of vacation time. We can wear ourselves out trying to see and to do as much as we can during the limited time that we have.

   Even as it is wise to have the vehicles in which we travel serviced before we leave home, we might consider the possibility of having a spiritual check-up before we embark on vacation. A practical way of doing this is by celebrating the Sacrament of Reconciliation. It’s heartening to note the number of us who make it a point to receive this Sacrament shortly before Christmas and as Easter approaches.

   Sad to say, sin is not seasonal. We are tempted to give in to lovelessness at all times during the year. Sometimes, we have actually hurt ourselves, others, the environment and the Lord in our attitudes, words, actions and by what we have failed to do.

   Whatever the season, sin cripples our ability to receive and to extend all that the Lord would give to us and do in and through us. As we celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation, the Lord frees us to relate to all of His blessings in a manner that is wholesome for ourselves and for persons over whom we have influence. Whether we go away or not during vacation time, experiencing the forgiveness of all of our sins leads us to want to invite the Lord to be with us in all that we do. As weekly worship and daily prayer remain the backbone of our lives, we will grow in the ability to appreciate the proper place of recreation, of work, of learning, of being with others and of being alone in our lives.

   Both for our own sake as well as for that of the persons whom the Lord has put into our lives, I hope that we will want to avail ourselves of our Lord’s healing love as this is offered to us in a personal way in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. As we do this, vacation time can indeed be life-renewing for ourselves and we  will be doing our part to enable those with whom we interact to experience something of that refreshing love for which we each yearn and of which our Lord is the Source.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Fr. Nelson Beaver – Pastor 

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