Opus Dei today

Pope begins summer vacation

Following his regular midday audience on Wednesday, July 7, Pope Benedict XVI left Rome for his summer residence at Castel Gandolfo, where he will remain until September. … The Pope is expected to resume his weekly public audiences in August, although he will remain at Castel Gandolfo.

The Pope has a twofold “ambitious objective” this summer: “beginning a new book on the Gospels of the infancy of Jesus and giving form to the first draft of his new encyclical, the fourth of his Pontificate.” … The encyclical will likely be on “Faith.” … He asked for prayers as he retires for a time of rest, work, study and writing.

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Some references to rest and vacation found in the works of the Founder:

• Furrow, 514: I have always seen rest as time set aside from daily tasks, never as days of idleness. … Rest means recuperation: to gain strength, form ideals and make plans. In other words it means a change of occupation, so that you can come back later with a new impetus to your daily job.
• The Way, 357: ‘It seems’ — so you say — ‘as if every imaginable sin were awaiting the first idle moment. Why, idleness itself must be a sin!’ … He who pledges himself to work for Christ should never have a free moment, because to rest is not to do nothing: it is to relax in activities which demand less effort.
• Friends of God, 62: You must fight against the tendency to be too lenient with yourselves. Everyone has this difficulty. Be demanding with yourselves! … We let ourselves get carried away by false rationalisations and waste our time, whereas Satan and his allies never take a holiday. …

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