![\"Koshute](\"https:\/\/blogs.sjcme.edu\/theology\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2016\/03\/Koshute-3-2-.png\")
<\/a>day\u2019s Propers (recalling Adam and Eve, who were both the Original Children<\/em> and First Parents<\/em>), Fr. Popson\u2019s homily on the importance of mercy and forgiveness, and the sound of children crying, cooing and laughing. It all got me to thinking about how I approach the Fast, and my relationship with God in general. The Fast is not just my chance to repent, but to begin the process of living a converted life. To do this requires not only personal discipline and the guidance of the Church, but childlike wonder<\/em>. Consider the snow, which for adults is a back-breaking commute spoiler. But a child sees in the snowflake a world of wonder. Put many flakes together and new possibilities open up. Children make angels, snowmen, forts, and projectiles with which to torment friends and siblings. The point is that where adults first see obstacles and nuisance, the child sees novelty, beauty and creative opportunities Of course we have responsibilities, and things like snowstorms do require our attention. Our maturity and experience are necessary to protect children and ourselves; but it can also wear away at our own sense of wonder.<\/p>\nWe\u2019ve all experienced a child\u2019s meltdown. Either as a parent or an observer, we know that sometimes a child needs a moment (or twenty) away to calm down. Yet when I heard the sounds and watched the movements of children on that Cheesefare Sunday I thought of my own proper<\/em> and often mechanical disposition before God. I know when to sit, when to bow, and when to bless myself. Children aren\u2019t as well disciplined because they\u2019re still learning (and we have a duty to teach them), but the wonder they possess – even if it\u2019s only in fleeting moments throughout the hour \u2013 are moments of praising God I can only hope<\/em> to achieve. Children look at the icons (really look \u2013 not just stare straight ahead at Father\u2019s back). They point up to the ceiling at the larger-than-life Jesus watching them, and they wave at Father when he emerges from behind the mysterious screen to bless. They turn up their little faces and open their mouths to receive Jesus just the way they receive their nourishment at breakfast or dinner. Children aren\u2019t always still or quiet, but they are often engaged in the Liturgy in a way I\u2019m not. The child wonders what\u2019s going on, while I take it for granted \u2013 and check my watch a few times. Sure, the child doesn\u2019t understand most of what\u2019s going on. But when the priest brings out the chalice and we say to a child, \u201cThere\u2019s Jesus,\u201d he actually looks for Him<\/em>.<\/p>\n The Fast is interminably \u201cslow\u201d when I mistake rigid adherence to the law (leaving no room for the \u201csurprise\u201d of encountering the living God), with authentic spiritual maturity. No, I shouldn\u2019t get up in the middle of Father\u2019s homily, babbling and waving. And, no, I shouldn\u2019t throw a tantrum on a Lenten Friday and demand a burger and piece of chocolate cake. To act in such childish<\/em> ways is not proper to who I am as an adult, or a person striving in the Faith. Adults must be adults; children are counting on it. But as I make my way through the Fast, seeking God\u2019s mercy \u2013 and learning to love Him and others more intimately \u2013 I won\u2019t be successful unless I heed Jesus\u2019 words and become childlike<\/em>. If I squash the wonder and pure delight found in seeking and meeting Christ, then I will never grow up<\/em> to be God\u2019s own precious child.<\/p>\n \u201cTo be a child means to owe one’s existence to another, and even in our adult life we never quite reach the point where we no longer have to give thanks for being the person we are.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0\u00a0Hans Urs von Balthasar<\/a><\/p>\n Ann Koshute<\/strong> teaches theology for Saint Joseph\u2019s College Online<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In his gospel account St. Matthew describes a moment in which Jesus interrupts His preaching to bring a child before the crowd. He commands them, \u201cunless you turn and become like children you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.\u201d … Continue reading