From the Pastor’s Desk October 7th, 2018

What a season Autumn is. One day it’s in the low 40s and the next it’s just about to crack 80. Even last week at Mass, it was chill and crisp outside and inside it felt only a few degrees short of a sauna. On a joyful note, thank you to our maintenance guru Eric. He has been working all week to make sure that the temperature is a little more regular for the rest of the fall.

Although this weather has been anything but routine, Fall often is about returning to routine. We return to school or work after summer vacations. We return to class, social outings, and church groups. As I think about my daily routine, there is something that I wish there were more of, silence.  When did we stop being friends with silence? I honestly don’t know the answer. We fill every moment of our lives with urgency and distraction. If we are not vigilant every second of our day can pass us by and with all the noise we hardly have a second to pause to think a thought or pray a prayer. It can be far more enticing to distract ourselves with just about anything, than embrace the importance and the awkwardness of silence. Despite its initial awkwardness, silence can be an incredible gift.

When I study the Scriptures, I find many examples of Jesus sneaking out to pray. Luke 5:16 puts it “Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.”  With the amount of noise and distraction in my life hardly any place seems lonely. In an instant, I can be communicating with a loved one or see what’s my friends are doing. However, in some ways, despite all of the connectedness we have, sometimes all places feel a little bit lonely.  I wonder if this is because of our lack of silence?  Henri Nouwen noted, “Somewhere we know that without silence words lose their meaning, that without listening speaking no longer heals, that without distance closeness cannot cure.”

Why did Jesus seek this lonely place? He drew strength from undistracted time connecting with