Message Board

Dear Friends in the Lord,

Our days are filled with activities and generally, the demands of our life-mission are great and, as committed stewards, we move from one task to another. While this zeal is a blessing, it can also leave us little space for rest and time for our inner journey. In a fast-moving world and demanding work schedule, this becomes not only difficult but may even seem unwarranted. Yet, just as each day invites us to pause and be with ourselves, so too, each year calls us to set aside sufficient time for rest and review. Just as a machine requires periodic servicing, we too need to break away from the stream of activities and spend time with ourselves and with the Lord. Hence, my dear friends, I invite each one of you this month to Rest, Review, and Reorient.

Rest is not merely the absence of work; it is a time of renewal: physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Jesus himself invites us, “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while” (Mark 6:31). This invitation is not a luxury but a necessity. Meaningful rest revitalizes our whole being and reinvigorates our life-mission. It heals the fatigue that often goes unnoticed and replenishes the energy we need for our mission. We also hear the compassionate call of Jesus: compassionate call, “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest” (Mathew 11:28).  Here, rest is not only physical but deeply relational. Rest is a halt along the journey of life that allows us to reconnect with God ‘to know him more deeply, to love him more dearly and to follow him more closely’ (Spiritual Exercises 104).

Review is the grace of looking back with gratitude. Our Ignatian tradition offers us the beautiful practice of the Examen. St. Augustine of Hippo says, “Return to your heart… and from your heart go up to God.” We are reminded of Jesus’ own model of withdrawal and prayer. “Very early in the morning… He went off to a solitary place, where he prayed” (Mk. 1:35). This rhythm echoes the ancient insight of Plotinus, “The flight of the alone to the Alone.” It is this spirit that is beautifully presented in the book Alone with the Alone, where Mark E. Thibodeaux invites us to move from routine life to a deep, personal encounter with God. As we review our journey and ministry, we may ask: Where have I experienced consolation? Where have I felt desolation? What has the Lord been teaching me through people and events? This review will surely deepen our discernment. 

Having rested and reviewed, we are better disposed to reorient ourselves with God’s will. Reorientation does not always demand drastic changes; often, it is a gentle but firm adjustment of perspectives and directions. Reorientation calls us to move from the ordinary to the extraordinary, and from mediocrity to excellence. It invites us to reframe our mindset, renew our perspectives, revitalize our dedication, and rekindle our apostolic zeal to “Go forth and set the world on fire.”

Dear friends, as we are in the month of May, let us accompany Mary our mother, who kept pondering on all that happened in her life. Through the intercession of Mary, let this month become a time of renewal, refreshing our mind and body. As Friends in the Lord, let us dedicate ourselves to meaningful rest, faithful review, and fruitful reorientation.

Fr. Thomas Amirtham, S.J.,

Provincial, The Jesuit Madurai Province