Vocations, despite the challenges and hardships they sometimes bring, are meant to be paths to life; they are also indispensable sources of meaning, hope, and even joy. And yet—increasingly today—many people find themselves barely hanging on, enduring their callings more than flourishing in them. They find themselves stressed and exhausted, stretched way too thin, and worried about burning out. Among the many reasons for this trend, a very important one emerges: a loss of appreciation for leisure as an integral part of living vocationally. By combining brief presentations with time for discussion, the panelists will first explore how we have arrived in this situation, in which living our callings leaves us more depleted than fulfilled. They will then reflect on what leisure is (as well as what it isn’t). Finally, they will suggest some ways to reintegrate leisure as an essential element in a vocational life.
Kevin Gary, Professor of Education, Valparaiso University (IN)
Elizabeth Newman, Adjunct Professor of Theology, Duke University Divinity School (NC)
Paul Wadell, Professor Emeritus of Theology and Religious Studies, St. Norbert College (WI)