Rule of Life (5) - Rest

RULE OF LIFE (5) - REST

So far, in these addresses on a Rule of Life, we have noted that if we are serious about growing in the spiritual life, we need to be disciplined disciples.

We have also noted that this discipline is best expressed in a personal Rule of Life which gives a pattern to our spiritual life and thereby facilitates growth by enabling us, to persevere, assess progress and set realistic goals.

We then turned our attention to two particular areas of discipleship which should find expression in that Rule. First of all, worship, whereby we come to know God through regular, common and private prayer and the reading of the Bible. Secondly, self-discipline expressed by giving freely of our time, talents and treasures; fasting, and self-examination.

Today, I want to conclude by saying something about the discipline of rest, which is so often overlooked in the spiritual life.

The aim of rest is to keep ourselves physically and mentally fit so that the Spirit of God may shine in our lives.

This may seem a strange ingredient to put into a Rule of Life but I am convinced that physical and mental tiredness is one of the major causes of sin. If we are not physically and mentally fit, we cannot be spiritually fit. Holiness, or wholeness involves the whole person and that includes our physical and mental wellbeing, besides our spiritual wellbeing.

For instance, if I have a painful toothache my mind will become focused upon the pain and as a result my prayer life will become distracted by the pain.

Similarly, if I am anxious, worried and concerned, this can lead to ulcers or indeed a heart attack, which in turn leads to my prayers becoming totally self-centred reflecting concern for my own wellbeing.

In short, our physical and mental wellbeing is essential to our spiritual wellbeing. It is therefore essential that our Rule of Life contains something about the discipline of rest.

The Rule of St Benedict illustrates this. The monastic life of the community set aside certain hours of the day for worship, for reading and for physical work.

We need to have a sense of balance in our lives since "all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy" and that also applies to Jill!

So what are you going to do about rest in your Rule of Life? I suggest three areas for attention.

Firstly, to rest physically. Just as God rested physically on the Sabbath Day, according to the story of Creation, so you need to rest physically if you are to reflect the divine likeness in your life.

Since Jesus rose from the dead on the first day of the week, Christians have from early times observed Sunday as the Christian Sabbath. So how are you going to keep Sunday? The fourth Commandment instructs us to keep the Sabbath "holy". "Holy" means 'separate from'. In other words, how are you going to keep Sunday - or your day off if you work on a Sunday - separate from the other six days of the week?

But our Rule concerning rest, needs to go further than that. It also concerns the amount of sleep you require. Not all of us, are like Margaret Thatcher (someone would say 'thankfully') who was able to survive on three to four hours sleep when she was in office. Most people need seven to nine hours sleep. Unless we have adequate sleep, we become irritable, muddle headed and bad-tempered. Hence the failure to observe a Rule about rest can be a major cause of sin.

Secondly, to rest rnentallv. Your mind needs to be able to rest as much as your body. Sleep is not always adequate. I know from personal experience that if I go to bed with something on my mind, I will have a restless sleep and wake up more tired than before I went to bed.

I personally enjoy gardening and walking as a means of relaxing the mind. I also enjoy oil painting, though sadly I have not done any for ages.

And here is a confession. I well recall a Good Friday in Australia when I had planned to go to three churches for the traditional three hours devotion between 12 & 3pm, the time when Jesus was dying upon the Cross. At about 10.00am I got my easel and pallet and brushes out and began to paint. About 4.30pm my wife reminded me of my earlier intentions. I had become so absorbed in what I was doing that I had completely lost any sense of time. My mind was completely relaxed. This is one of the values of hobbies.

Finally. to rest spiritually. There is a need for regular times of peace and quiet. Worship is important. The reading of the scriptures is important. Yet there is also a need to be just alone with God without any agenda. This is illustrated by the life of St Anthony of Egypt - a life which could be summed up in the word "solitude". He found his solitude in the desert by the River Nile. Cardinal Basil Hume observed "'We shall never be safe in the market place unless we are at home in the desert".

So I invite you to consider where you are going to find your desert environment so that you can just be alone with God and allow him to draw you closer to himself. Is this something you need to do daily/weekly/monthly or annually?

Some people try and go on a Quiet Day, similar to the one provided by Churches Together. Some people try and go on an Annual Retreat for two to three days, midweek or over a weekend.

To sum up then, our Rule of Life needs to include discipline about rest - rest physically, mentally and spiritually - if we are to grow in wholeness.

Two final words about a personal Rule of Life.

Firstly, may I repeat that a Rule of Life is a voluntary undertaking whereby a serious disciple seeks to give a pattern or shape to their spiritual life. It is no more and no less than that. It is not, and I repeat, not about the keeping or breaking of individual rules: Such an approach leads us down the road to the sin of pride whereby we say "Look how good I am". That, you will recall was the mistake the Pharisees made. They reduced the Law to the observance of petty rules and regulations. Jesus condemned that approach. In the Sermon on the Mount, he was concerned about the overall inward attitude which lay behind the outward observance of the Law. Likewise, a Rule of Life is the expression of our inward attitude, namely, our intention to give a certain pattern or shape to our spiritual life through the exercise of discipline.

Secondly, a personal Rule of Life needs to be reviewed on a regular basis, say annually or every two years in the light of your spiritual growth. As I have already said, it should be sufficient to encourage growth but not so demanding as to discourage growth.

When drawing up a Rule of Life, it can be helpful to do this in consultation with your spiritual director, or if you have not got one, with a parish priest. After all, that is what a priest is for - not to sign passport applications and the host of other things that come on his or her desk - but to enable people to grow in wholeness so that they may reflect the divine likeness in their lives more and more.

Well, I hope these Lenten Addresses may have been of some help to you as you progress in your spiritual journey. I first drew up a Rule of Life when I was confirmed. Over the years, this has been revised many times to reflect my changing circumstances and growth in the spiritual life.

I invite you to consider drawing up a Rule of Life appropriate to you so that you may experience the new life which God offers us and which we celebrate.