"Unless you become like little children, you will not enter into the Kingdom of God." Jesus was saying a lot more than we know here with His words to our hearts.
Unless we become like little children, we will not even enter into this life either much less the next life:
Children see things clearly: they see clouds not as water vaper hanging above us at perfect atmospheric pressure and altitude to look white and soft. No, they just see animals and faces and heroes.
Children are proof of the epistomological principle that "We see things not as they are but as we are."
For example a child looking at a robin in a nest sees wonder and beauty and bird-babyhood. But a cat sees those same birds as a meal. Why? Because we see things as we are not as they are. A photographer takes pictures of a zebra in the jungle. He sees the beauty and the grace of the herd as they protect one another by staying close to one another to blend together by their stripes because it is hard for a lion to zero in on one zebra when they are huddle together - thus making a kind of zebra-blur of no-individuals. But a lion does not see the beauty of them at all. He sees potential dinner.
Thus, a person who beholds beauty beholds it as he is - not as it is in itself. In itself, a zebra is a complex living system which is ware that it is part of a herd of similar individuals who want closeness, protection and plenty of safe grass and water. Of course in God's eyes, animals are so much more. They are examples of His creative mind. And God has a "Beautiful Mind".
Children - says Mitch Album - need to be children. We need to let them be children - to play and enjoy, to wonder and call one another to with excitement: "Look!" Mitch says we need to imitate children in these four ways:
1) Have conversations face to face [not emails or phone or texting].
2) Build something. Create something. I created a shrine to our Lady. It is 8 feet tall and made of about 500 bricks. I never laid a brick before this; but it turned out great. I painted the statue of Our Lady holding the Christ Child in her arms. I have 20 coats of varnish on the statue. I had the shrine blest by a Jesuit. We sang a song to Mary to dedicate her new shrine. One neighbor said she looks so beuaiful that someone will steal it from me. It doesn't seem that someone would steal Mary and make off with her. Well, if some one would do that, I would pay any ransom for her to get her back.
3) Learn something today you did not know. Kids are always looking for something new which they promptly share. Even when we were trading baseball cards in the 50's, we were sharing baseball stars statistics. "Did you know that........?" I learn several things new everyday...AND I share them all with YOU!
4) Read something. Learn by reading. Kids have so many children's books. I as a grandfather have to read the same story over and over again because that is their world of adventure and make believe. The Engine Thomas and Sir Toppen Hat are real - absolutel real - to children. These characters are sacred. We know that because at Greenfield Village in Dearborn, my grandkids saw Thomas and Sir Toppen Hat!
Fr. Nick astutely has seen a child-like episode between Phillip and Nathaniel in today's gospel. Fr.Nick said "Phillip says to Nathaniel: 'Come and See"! I have found the Messiah!" This cry of "Come and See!" is exactly what kids do when they have found something exciting and great! This playfulness of Phillip to call Nathaniel to the Lord is a good example for us. Jesus uses us...to bring others to Him. He said about Paul: "He is my chosen vessel to bring the good news to the Gentiles." Now Jesus can just make a cosmic announcement from the heavens. He does not do that. He uses personal representatives to call others to Himself. Of course Jesus is imitating the Father who sent prophets all down the salvation history of Israel starting with Abraham. As God the Father changed the name of Abram to Abraham, so Jesus changes Saul to Paul and Simon to Peter and even nick names a few: John and James become "Sons of thunder"! What is Jesus name for you? He calls me "Peter" and pronounces it affectionately as "Petah"! with emphasis on "Pe"!
Does your computer have sound? If so, please google one word: Evancho and you will see and hear a 10-year- old girl who is very tiny but who has an enormous voice. Her viewing public called into the station and told them that she was not really singing; but she was only lipsinging to another person's voice. She sounds like a 35-year-old woman! At 8 years old, her mom took her to see and hear the "Phantom of the Opera!" This was Jackie's first live performance of singing. She went home and started to sing the songs from the Phantom by memory. This was the beginning of her singing career. Now at 10, eventhough she does not have a trained voice, she won first place on that talent show. One of the judges said that he has been judging talent from London to New York and has never heard anything better than this little girl. He admitted he had goose bumps listening to her. I listen to her almost everyday so as to be inspired to do my best, too. But one thing is sure: she is still a little child. She has a child-like amazement at herself and all the love she is receiving from her fans. When asked how she felt, she said she almost cried. Then she answered the question with a made-up word that sounded like "fabulouso" - an coined-Italian word she must made up on the spot. Her mind is beautiful as her face and her voice. She is so innocent. She seems holy. Her singing of "Pie Jesu" is fabulous. Her singing of the "Ave Maria" is song as a prayer. Jackie is the child of year....maybe of the decade....maybe of the century!
Father in Heaven, make us to be as little children so we can enter into this world and into the Kingdm of God in heaven. Make us to see that the Kingdom of God is here right now amongs us...whenever we bring Christ to be seen in us and around us and through us. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
Love, Pio
No comments:
Post a Comment