By Gary Topping–
The best wisdom I can contribute to this blog—perhaps all the wisdom—is what I glean from others whose intelligence, eloquence and spirituality attract my attention. Going through some of my papers recently, I came across a page of notes I took during a retreat given to employees of the Diocese of Salt Lake City by Bishop (later Archbishop) John C. Wester. All I have is the basic points he made, with none of his elaborations. The elaborations which I give here are mostly my own ideas, though it could be that some of Bishop Wester’s ideas are still subliminally floating around in my brain.
By way of preface, I should point out that we Pastoral Center employees are encouraged to think of our work as a ministry, rather than just a job. To help keep our sights on that high goal, we are given pastoral support, sometimes in the form of half-day retreats such as the one at issue here, by the bishop or other clergy. This one came in two parts: first a discussion of “Four Universal Human Needs,” and then after a break, a discussion of “Three Don’ts in Prayer.” As I say, I will give Bishop Wester’s basic points in capital letters, then my own elaborations, for whatever they are worth, in lower case. Readers are encouraged to use the bishop’s points as prompts for their own reflections.
Four Universal Human Needs-
INTIMACY. Most of us, I suppose, tend to think of intimacy primarily in sexual terms, so it might strike us as odd that a celibate person would list this one first. But I know that Bishop Wester has a very close relationship with his mother and his siblings and that he is a very warm person who forms friendships easily, and it is clear that those relationships are foundation stones of his life.
TRANSCENDENCE. Being part of something larger than ourselves, even if it is something like a political party or a professional organization, expands our lives out of a claustrophobic and myopic focus on ourselves. At a higher level, a commitment to the Church and a belief in God enable us to contemplate ultimate questions of the origin and destiny of humanity and the cosmos.
JOY. Happiness and joy seem to me to be related, but different. I experience happiness when I eat a good meal and drink a good glass of wine, but joy goes much deeper, in a sense of being in the right place and doing the right thing. Conceived that way, joy could exist in the midst of suffering, but happiness probably could not.
BEAUTY. Each of us sees beauty in different ways, and I would add that creativity is part of that basic need. One need not write a novel or paint a picture to create beauty. A finely tuned motorcycle engine can be a thing of beauty, as can a well-tended flower garden or a hand-knitted sweater.
MYSTERY. One of the best things I learned in college and graduate school is that most serious issues in life have no final and simple answers. We need to learn to live with a certain ambiguity and to embrace living in a world where new and old problems continue to call upon our creativity.
Three Don’ts in Prayer-
DON’T JUDGE IT. Do you ever fall asleep while saying the rosary or find yourself reciting the prayers of the Liturgy of the Hours for the wrong day or week? Do you find yourself daydreaming at Mass, as Mike O’Brien has admitted to doing? Don’t sweat it! Be assured that God is just happy to be hearing from you and to see you sitting out there in that pew.
DON’T WORK AT IT. My greatest failing. I often pray the Liturgy of the Hours as an obligation, rather than a joyful opportunity to spend a few happy moments with God. I sometimes go to Mass out of a sense of obligation rather than an opportunity to recharge my spiritual batteries and have my life transformed by the Eucharist.
DON’T DO IT TO GET SOMETHING. How many people regard God as the great Santa Claus in the sky? God knows what we need, and I think the best kind of praying is, beyond “Give us this day our daily bread,” a desire that “Thy will be done.”
