How to Practice Soul Care at Home
What Is Soul Care?
You’ve probably heard of the term self-care, but what about soul care?
The idea behind soul care is that, just as every other part of your being needs care—physical, emotional, etc.—so does your soul. And when we take care of our whole selves, including our souls, we find freedom and fullness of life.
But what exactly is soul care? Beyond the sacraments, which are the primary and most important ways to care for our souls, there are many different ways we can tend to our spiritual well being. Each of the ways is centered in a good God gift created for our enjoyment and wholeness—gifts like laughter, beauty, friendship, and rest.
A rightly ordered relationship with these gifts helps us flourish as human beings created in God’s image. And subsequently, when we overlook one or more of these areas, this “deficiency” can affect our spiritual health.
More Than Self-Care
Unlike self-care, which stereotypically takes the form of expensive spa visits or nights out with friends, soul care doesn’t cost anything or even require you to leave your home. It can take the form of journaling, spiritual reading, sitting in your garden, a phone call with a trusted friend, or sometimes just taking a nap!
Below are some of the many different ways we can care for our souls. Take a look and see if your life is missing one or more of the following practices. Then, try incorporating one of them into your normal routine. You may be surprised at some of the changes you’ll notice in your mood, your outlook on life, and even your prayer!
6 Ways to Practice Soul Care at Home
1) Daily Mass
Prayer and the sacraments are the most important form of soul care. But when you can’t make it to your parish in person, you can pray with the daily Mass on CatholicTV. Listen to the Liturgy of the Word, be inspired by the homily, and unite your heart with Jesus in the Eucharist through an act of Spiritual Communion.
2) At-Home Retreat
Spiritual retreats are a favorite form of soul care for Catholics. But you don’t need to book a weekend at a retreat house to take advantage of this form of soul care! Join Fr. Anthony Michalik for a 10-part video retreat series, Living in the Light of Christ, filmed on the scenic grounds of the San Alfonso Retreat Center in Long Branch, New Jersey.
Find more ideas for making a spiritual retreat at home here.
3) Inner healing
Sometimes we go to Confession but don’t experience the healing we desire. That can happen when there are deeper emotional wounds underneath our sins that need addressing. Dr. Bob Schuhts from the JPII healing center talks about the five of the most common emotional wounds and the healing power of faith in an interview on This Is the Day. Watch the interview and see if any of these wounds resonate with you, then take it to pray and ask for the Lord’s healing.
4) Visio Divina
Sometimes, your soul needs beauty. Sacred art is a powerful expression of beauty that lifts our hearts toward heaven through earthly media like paint, marble, and mosaics. This kind of art also provides rich material to meditate on in prayer.
If you’ve never prayed with sacred art before, try visio divina. Latin for “divine seeing,” this form of prayer meets us through the visual dimension of our human experience. By slowing down and truly looking, we make space for God to speak to us through beauty.
Check out the CatholicTV series Visio Divina: Praying with Art for guided meditations on sacred works of art, and learn more about this form of prayer here.
5) Friendship and Laughter
God created us for human connection. In fact, the first instance of something not being good in Sacred Scripture was when Adam was alone, before God created Eve (see Genesis X:XX). And it’s not good for us to be alone either, but sometimes we can’t help it if we’re not always able to get out and meet others in person. Thankfully, technology makes it possible for us to stay connected even from a distance. Phone a trusted friend and enjoy some laughs and a good chat. When that’s not possible, turn on The Gist and listen in on insightful conversations with other Catholic women as they discuss topics like authentic friendships, healing from struggles, the grace of confession, and intimacy with Jesus through the Eucharist.
6) Rest
Rest is perhaps one of the most underrated but important soul care practices. Sometimes, our bodies can’t do any more and just need a break, but that doesn’t mean rest can’t be spiritually fruitful. Offer up your rest as prayer and simply sit or lie in silence before God. If you nod off, that’s ok too—even St. Thérèse of Lisieux was known to fall asleep during her prayers! May her words encourage you:
I should be distressed that I drop off to sleep during my prayers and during my thanksgiving after Holy Communion. But I don’t feel at all distressed. I know that children are just as dear to their parents whether they are asleep or awake and I know that doctors put their patients to sleep before they operate. So I just think that God ‘knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.'
If you prefer more active prayer while resting, you can play an episode of the Rosary or the Chaplet of Divine Mercy in the background. Simply pray along or meditate quietly with the spoken prayers, and offer that to Our Lord, too.
Start Practicing Soul Care
Soul care does not need to be complicated or costly. It begins by paying attention to the simple ways God wants to meet us each day. Through practices involving prayer, beauty, conversation, and rest, we can turn our homes into places of renewal and communion with Him. Start with one practice and return to it often, trusting that God is the ultimate caregiver for your soul.