This Sunday our second grade P.S.R. students will celebrate their First Holy Communion. The teachers as well as the students were true examples of stewardship in this difficult year. In their journey toward receiving their First Holy Communion, they studied, prayed, and did works of charity. It always amazes me just how pure and innocent their love for Jesus is.
Each year the second-grade class attends a retreat the week before their First Communion. They rehearse the mechanics of the liturgy, make their banners, and receive their communion missals. When we were gathered in the church before rehearsal, I asked the children, “Where do you see Jesus in the church?” The responses were wonderful. Some said in the tabernacle, the altar, and many other examples. But one little girl raised her hand. As I walked towards her, she quietly said, “In the heart.” She was referring to the heart of Jesus in the Sacred Heart of Jesus statue. What a beautiful and profound response from a little child.
Why do we give our time, talent, and treasure to Jesus? It is a small response to the love that pours forth from his sacred heart to all of us. I have read many religious books and attended many lectures, but I have to say that this little second grader taught me something I will never forget!
Love,
Deacon John