At that moment Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said: “I offer you praise, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because what you have hidden from the learned and the clever you have revealed to the merest children. Yes, Father, you have graciously willed it so.”

The group The Last Goodnight's song "Pictures of You," calls to our minds exactly what we are doing to our world. "This is the clock upon the wall," they begin their song, "this is the story of us all, this is the first sound of a newborn child before he starts to crawl. This is the war that’s never won, this is a soldier and his gun, this is the mother waiting by the phone, praying for her son. Pictures of you, pictures of me, hung upon your wall for the world to see; pictures of you, pictures of me remind us all of what we used to be. We are the boxers in the ring; we are the bells that never ring. There is a title we can't win no matter how hard we might swing." And they close the song, "Pictures of you, pictures of me remind us all of what we could have been." The song brings out what is happening in our world, and makes us think about what we should be.   

Jesus had a special love for children. It is evident from his words in Scripture as well as the times he interacted with them. He loved them as people and he loved them for what they taught others in their own innocent way. Perhaps he loved them especially because they were not blemished yet by the world in which they would grow up.

The song "Pictures of You" calls to mind the pictures that we see on the walls of just about every home in our world--pictures of the people of the family who once were young and smiling and happy, about to grow up to live and work in an adult world. They are, as the group sings, "pictures of you and me." They are pictures both of what we used to be--a happy past, and pictures of what we could be--people living lives of true contentment. The song paints the contrast, however: what we have become is a people at war, full of government-controlled evil, man-made disasters, and people with a bright future that may never come.

Jesus wanted us to be like children in the sense that, as children, we would value and pursue the basic realities of life in an innocent and uncomplicated way. That is, we become like children who simply know that it is not right to kill anyone no matter who is right or wrong. That as a child, we see that if you say people should help someone, they do it, no matter what the political situation. That as any child perceives, we stop using things that are hurting us. That we become people who want to give to others true life, freedom and the right to the pursuit of happiness, simply because they are human beings, no matter what they look like or sound like.

Children do not understand everything they feel. But they know that they want everyone to be happy, like the pictures of their families on the walls of their homes. What a wonderful lesson for everyone, both child and adult!                   

THOUGHT
 
PRAYER

Good and gracious God, your Son wanted us to be like children because you revealed to them the secrets of living without complication and in complete innocence. Give us the grace to be like children as we pursue our lives in the midst of a world that often is very complicated and without innocence. Be with us, we pray. 

Questions, comments? Let me know. Email Fr. Mike

©2007 Capuchin Province of Mid-America
Fr. Mike Scully is a member of the Capuchin Province of Mid-America