Asking the Clergy: How does summer restore your spirit?

For some Long Island clergy, summer is a time to refocus on aspects of their lives and ministry that may receive less attention during the rest of the year. This week’s clergy discuss a season spent rediscovering God’s creation, finding more family time and volunteering in community-building projects.

Sister Diane Capuano

Sisters of St. Dominic of Amityville

Summer is my favorite season. It is when God’s presence is revealed to me in ways that incorporate all of God’s wonderful creation, a time to refresh my body, mind and spirit.

Although I do not have the summer off, there is a slowing down in my ministry. There are fewer meetings and evening events so there is more time to be outdoors, which I love. I love soaking in the rays of the sun, either at the beach or by a pool, while reading good novels that I do not have time for during the rest of the year. I love spending time looking at the magnificent blue sky and clouds, or riding my bike in my neighborhood — a great way to see my neighbors and the beautiful homes and gardens where I live.

I also take a retreat to spend quality quiet time with God. After the retreat, I feel renewed and ever so grateful for this holy and sacred time. I can enjoy family gatherings and visiting with friends, and being with my sisters in community, sharing life together and maybe even having a barbecue.  

Rabbi Mendy Goldberg

Lubavitch of the East End, Coram

The importance of a restful vacation is obvious, and using the summertime for that rest is a wonderful idea. Taking a summer vacation, however, shouldn’t mean ceasing study or work. A summer break should be viewed more as a transitional period, like sleeping, when the body continues to breathe, but it is slowed down.

Consequently, a summer vacation ought to be used to slow down and spend more time with your family than you can during a typical workweek, or to learn something that you may not have had a chance for when your schedule was more hectic. During the summer, I find myself spending less time in the office and more time with my family.

The rest of the year, I may focus more on giving classes, but summer is more about what I’ll be learning for my own spiritual growth. As the summer progresses, I also prepare and realign myself for the High Holidays and the coming year.

A purposeful summer empowers us to make every moment count even when we’re on vacation. It reinvigorates us for the eventual return to the daily grind.

Marie McNair of East Patchogue

Secretary, Regional Baha’i Council of the Northeastern States

American culture promotes the concept that resting and restoring our spirit is a good focus for summer leisure activities. I find that the best way to restore my spirit is to focus even more on activities that occupy me as a Baha’i every day, no matter the season. This includes teaching virtues like truthfulness and kindness to children in a nearby neighborhood. I also participate in community-building through social-action projects such as helping provide sustenance for food-insecure families.

In my work as the secretary of the Regional Baha’i Council, in summer I facilitate sessions for young people and adults to strengthen their capacity to serve their communities. Baha’u’llah, our religion’s founder, taught us to work for the betterment of the world and live together in harmony.

It’s exhilarating to participate in our faith’s worldwide effort to bring about material and spiritual progress. To contribute to an understanding of the oneness of the human family, the establishment of unity and the elimination of prejudice, and to work with like-minded people in that endeavor, restores my spirit more than anything else that I know.