remedied by resting the soul: and the soul’s rest is pleasure.”18 The pleasure that refreshes the soul is playful and humorous and this enables one to return to contemplative prayer—rather than merely to work. Although Aquinas had taken some important steps in understanding the spiritual value of play by relating it to prayer, he did not go nearly as deeply into the matter as he could have, despite the fact that he prepared the way for an even more intimate relationship between play and prayer. Let