I am fortunate that as a priest, I get to go on a week-long retreat as a part of my priestly spirituality every year. I love going on different places for retreat, especially monasteries where I get to spent the time with the monks there. A few years ago, I went on retreat in Gethsemane in Kentucky, the Trappist monastery where Thomas Merton was a monk. I loved praying the liturgy of the hours with the monks there. I remember that when I was at a ministerial association meeting in Tupelo, I asked the other pastors there if their denominations had the same retreat requirement that we Catholics have for our priests about going on a retreat each year. They stated that although some of them went on retreat from time to time, there was no such requirement.
Prayer and discernment are the foundation of our Catholic faith. We should also take time periodically from our busy lives for times of silence and prayer. In addition, we should not make a big decision in our lives without prayer and discernment. And it is always helpful to have someone trained in spiritual direction and discernment to help us in the discernment process.
All these things came to my mind as I read through the Gospel today, as we hear about Jesus praying and discerning before he chose his apostles from the many disciples that gathered around him through his ministry. All of us, whether we are lay or ordained, would greatly benefit from an annual retreat or spiritual exercise that will help us discern God’s will on our journey of faith. As in many aspects of our faith, Jesus is a model for us in his words and his actions. May God always be close to our thoughts and our hearts.
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