Suggested Reading: MARK 10: 2-16
We are all
Children of God. He created us and loves us so much as his own. It is as simple
as that. To fully experience this love that he has for us we have to have that
complete and utter trust that a small child has for its mother. We need to
surrender everything that we have over to him. We need to submit to him and
recognize that he is indeed our father and our master. It is no coincidence
that for the last three weeks the Sunday Gospel Themes have been centralized
around the subject of little children and their relation to us. In reality, we
can learn a lot from what Jesus is telling us even though it goes against a lot
of what we have been taught and shown through our interactions in society.
I feel that we
all can remember a time when we held a little child in our arms and looked into
its eyes. How sweet and innocent that moment was. From the expression on that
child’s face to that fresh smell of cleanliness. That smell that only a new
life uncorrupted by the world can produce. How can any of us forget that time
when a child looked up at us and smiled a smile which expressed such an
uncompromising love that we just had to smile back? I encourage all of us to
remember when that happened and hold that memory close to us. That captivating
moment is where Jesus wants us to be in relation to him. He wants us to become
like that child so that we may receive the Love of the Father completely.
The experience
of Jesus Christ has the capability of changing the world. As we continue along
our Journey of Faith this should become more evident. If Jesus Christ is God
and he is responsible for the entirety of creation, including us, then it goes
without saying that the closer we become to him we then become closer to the
realization of who we are in relation to everything around us. So much time in
our lives is spent where we pursue the wrong things; searching for instant
gratification and stimulation that makes us feel good for the moment but
ultimately destroys us. When we do this, we are disconnected with God’s
Creation and have turned away from his love. As a result, we are unhappy and
discontent. Even though this is the case, we then further go astray by
repeating the same patterns of destruction thinking there will be a different
result. We fight to maintain control over a situation where there is no control
or structure. We welcome chaos because of the instantaneous pleasure that it
brings; unconscious of the carnage that is partnered with it. When we finally
do become aware of the calamities our decisions have caused, we find ourselves
in a tumultuous state. The world then starts to slowly grind us into the
ground.
There is only
one way of overcoming this. We need to release all of our preconceived notions
of what makes us happy. We must become like that child that Jesus held in his
arms and experience the joy of someone who loves us completely regardless of
what we have done or what we have failed to do. To do this, we have to simplify
our lives and put Jesus at its forefront. Jesus must be first just as the
person that is holding a child is the only thing that occupies that child’s
attention. Be attentive to Christ and he will be attentive to us. Through this
mutual attentiveness, the bonds of love will foster and grow.
Deacon Tom.
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