Posted by Fr. Thomas Fitzpatrick, Rector of St. Joseph Cathedral Is there such a thing as too much play? Now that’s a question my Dad and I went round and round about when I was younger, and of course he was right pretty much every time. A lot of times my study of theology in the seminary was punctuated by remorse over how untrusting I was of his wisdom…I’m definitely not as smart as I thought I was. There is however a little known virtue called Eutrapelia, which is the ‘habit of a pleasant and cheerful turn of mind’. It’s a habit of solid and good recreation, the human need to relax and play; to turn away from the pressure and drudgery of work and recharge our batteries. We all must pay attention to our rest, but part of this equation is relaxation through games, especially to relieve tension. We all recognize this need, and luckily, so does God. The question is how and when we play. Balance is the key, because we don’t want to be addicted to our pastimes, and they must never be indecent or cause injury through carelessness or malice. A big factor, and one my Dad was always careful to monitor is the question of timing. Missing Mass for the sake of games is just plain sinful, and a needless omission of our spiritual duties. Blowing Mass off cannot be justified, especially in light of the number of Masses available in our area and around the state on Saturday and Sunday. Hopefully we put more effort in fulfilling our weekly Mass responsibility than we do in pursuit of games and vacations. We all have our experiences of dread when trying to find Mass in a strange place, or if the Mass times were listed incorrectly and we are stuck, and when this happens the Church provides for these situations. The question then becomes whether we planned for this possibility as well as we planned for our vacation or pastime in the first place. When we render the praise that God is due, wherever we are, we are content and avoid sin…needless sin at that. If you are away from home, there are many ways to find Masses near your location. I googled “Mass timesUSA” and found numerous websites and telephone services that can help us to find Mass anywhere. There is no vacation from the 10 Commandments, and our steadfast observance of them in all situations provides the proper example for children and loved ones alike. Develop the virtue of Eutrapelia. Play hard, play well and go to Church. Summer is fun, but it is short, so make the most of it in a well-rounded, spiritual way.
Posted on: Sat, 15 Jun 2013 01:20:32 +0000
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