CAVINESS: Prioritizing prayer, even during Ordinary Time

After 50 days of enjoying the Easter festivities, we have now once again entered the season of Ordinary Time. Students are home for summer break, and the normal routine of a busy semester has transitioned into a period of rest. It is very easy to slip into the mentality that Ordinary Time is just that — ordinary. 

Many begin to relax and their faith life can begin to settle. This is especially true for students. During the academic semesters, our students have access to community and fellowship in a more profound way within the Newman Centers at their universities. The spiritual life becomes easier when there are daily events such as Rosary, Adoration and Mass in the same place that they spend most of their free time. 

When the students return home for the summer, they lose this, and it becomes very easy to slip into a mentality of lukewarmness in their prayer and faith life. 

I know that during my time in college, my faith life was strong during the academic year. I attended daily Mass, regularly received the Sacrament of Reconciliation, and these practices bolstered my own personal prayer life. However, as soon as the summer hit, these things quickly fell by the wayside. I slowly learned to take advantage of the blessings I had while at school, but I struggled when that closeness was removed. 

So how do we combat this? 

One of the most important lessons I learned while working in campus ministry during my senior year was the importance of intentionality. Even during a “break,” we must still prioritize the things that matter most — especially prayer and the Sacraments. If we do not intentionally set aside time for them, it becomes easy for them to disappear amid vacations, outdoor activities and the many distractions of summer. 

I am reminded of what one of the formation advisors at Holy Trinity Seminary constantly said to all the men: “There is no vacation from your vocation.” While each of us has a unique calling in life, we all share the universal call to holiness. Summer vacation is not meant to be spiritually ordinary. It is an opportunity to remain close to the Lord who continually sustains us. 

I challenge all faithful, especially our students and young adults, to continue to dive ever deeper into the faith during this Ordinary Time. When on vacation, stop by the local parish and spend just a few minutes with our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament and schedule Sunday Mass into any travel plans.

In his book Life Lessons from the Monastery, Abbot Jerome Kodell points out that the Latin word used in Psalm 46:10 for “Be still” is vacate, which means to “empty out.” It is from this root that we get the English word vacation.

So then, let us make sure to spend time this summer to “be still” and have a vacation with God.

Dylan Caviness is the director of campus ministry at Sam Houston State University Catholic Student Center in Huntsville.