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Saint Junipero Serra had a vision that did not turn out as he originally conceived, after human sinfulness overwhelmed the design, as it did in the Garden of Eden. Yet the Holy Spirit succeeded, and the missions he founded today are sacred places, alive with God’s Spirit and God’s people.

The faithful who inhabit and tend these missions can give hope to all pilgrims, that however flawed our own efforts are, the Gospel will still find a way.

One does not go into solitude just to be there, or to be alone, or to struggle with one’s false self or demons. That would be sadism. A person builds a rhythm of solitude into life because of a need to meet and surrender to Christ. One may resist that, but it is a need. It is not possible to maintain and nurture a life of solitude without this dynamic. I must be aware that I want to meet Christ in my solitude. The surrender may be just for a moment, but if it is unconditional at that moment, there is peace and calm.