Leisure: The Basis of Mental Health
by Dr. Peter Martin

In his treatise on the concept of leisure, the 20th century German philosopher Josef Pieper offers a number of important insights readily applicable to managing anxiety. He asserts that leisure is not done for the sake of anything else; it is not a means to an end but an end in itself. At first glance, this position may seem backwards. Don’t we rest in order to return to work with renewed energy? Don’t we take time off to be more present and active, to be more on? While leisure is certainly necessary for personal renewal and naturally results in it, this does not denote a utilitarian link between the two.

To explain, Pieper considers an association of prayer with sleep. He says that “while it is true that the one who prays before going to bed sleeps better, surely nobody would want to think of praying as a means of going to sleep.” (pg. 54). Perhaps more directly related to the present subject, multiple studies (Anderson & Nunnelley, 2016; Boelens, Reeves, Replogle, & Koenig, 2009) have demonstrated the positive effects of prayer on anxiety and depression. To pray merely for these effects, however, would be to neglect the true value and purpose of prayer (see the Catechism of the Catholic Church, #2558 ff. for a definition of prayer). One can, however, rightly desire these consequences of prayer with the recognition that this is not, properly speaking, prayer’s main purpose. Similarly, one can will the positive personal effects of leisure with the same understanding.

Now, you might be thinking, “okay, that’s great Doc, but what does all of this philosophy and theology have to do with psychology and mental health?” On the face of it, not much. On a deeper level, though, true mental health implicitly rests on an accurate understanding of ourselves, God, and the world that He has created for us. The truth, properly understood and lived by, is liberating (c.f. John 8:32) on many levels of human functioning, including the psychological level. That said, let’s further examine authentic leisure and highlight some guidelines regarding how to practice it.

Pieper (1948/1998) provides a useful and brief description of leisure:

Leisure is a form of that stillness that is the necessary preparation for accepting reality; only the person who is still can hear, and whoever is not still, cannot hear. Such stillness as this is not mere soundlessness or a dead muteness; it means, rather, that the soul’s power, as real, of responding to the real – a co-respondence, eternally established in nature – has not yet descended into words. Leisure is the disposition of receptive understanding, of contemplative beholding, and immersion – in the real. (p. 50)

Later on, he adds that “no more intensive harmony with the world can be thought of than that of ‘Praise of God,’ the worship of the Creator of this world” (p. 69). For this reason, he notes that an authentic leisurely celebration of the created world must always recognize the Creator as its source. In this way it arguably overlaps with contemporary psychology’s emphasis on attending to the present moment with a curious and open attitude in order to decrease anxiety and other symptoms. However, rather than merely a focused effort at paying attention to the natural present moment with acceptance and curiosity, leisure nurtures a receptivity to creation as a reflection of the Creator. Ideally, the inherent calm of leisure helps to gently shake us from our frequent, half-awake existence and to open our eyes and hearts to the fullness of the present reality and its Lord.

Of great importance to spiritual and psychological wellness, leisure is available and accessible in countless ways, if only we set aside the personal time and space for it. It might consist of a loving conversation with family or friends, a silent walk around a lake, or contemplative attention to a musical masterpiece. In each case, the simply natural is transcended by its connection to the Author of nature. The healthy result is an increased orientation towards God—the source of authentic peace—and a refreshing, life-giving decreased identification with the merely natural world of work and all the stress and anxiety that accompanies it.

References

Anderson, J. W., & Nunnelley, P. A. (2016). Private prayer associations with depression, anxiety and other health conditions: an analytical review of clinical studies. Postgraduate medicine, 128(7), 635-641.

Boelens, P. A., Reeves, R. R., Replogle, W. H., & Koenig, H. G. (2009). A randomized trial of the effect of prayer on depression and anxiety. The International Journal of Psychiatry in Medicine, 39(4), 377-392.

Pieper, J. (2009). Leisure: The basis of culture. Ignatius Press.