You’ve got to be taught
To hate and fear.
You’ve got to be taught
From year to year.
It’s got to be drummed
In your dear little ear.
You’ve got to be carefully taught.
You’ve got to be taught
To be afraid
Of people whose eyes
Are oddly made,
And people whose skin
Is a different shade.
You’ve got to be carefully taught.
You’ve got to be taught
Before it’s too late,
Before you are 6 or 7 or 8
To hate all the people
Your relatives hate.
You’ve got to be carefully taught.
Oscar Hammerstein (South Pacific)
Several years ago, I saw a video of two boys meeting on the street. One was a small black boy, the other a small white boy. The video begins with the two boys running down the sidewalk with their arms in the air. At first, you think they are running to a parent. But after a few seconds, you see that the two boys are running toward each other. You realize that the boys are friends, and they are happy to see each other. They are innocents and don’t know that a large part of society does not welcome a black boy being best friends with a white boy. When I first saw the video, the song above, from the musical (and movie) South Pacific, immediately came to mind. These boys love each other. They don’t know otherwise. How long until society teaches them that society’s values frequently do not equal the values of their innocence. Here is that video: https://youtu.be/nDQezECAxtQ
“Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?”
In one respect, reading today’s gospel (Matthew 18:1‑5, 10, 12‑14) is difficult, considering how our society treats children and the unborn. Data tells us that the vast majority of child sexual abuse happens by family members or the “significant other” of one or the other parent. Every day we read about unhappy children running away from home or being abducted. We are shocked by news stories of children being murdered by their peers and only occasionally by strangers. And yet, when Jesus is asked, “Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven? He answers, saying: “Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like a child, you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.”
What was Jesus getting at? With so many painful reminders of how vulnerable innocent children are, it is no wonder that we adults resist being like little children. Why does Jesus want us to become like children? What is there in “humility” that places this kind of disciple of Jesus in the highest place in the Kingdom of heaven?
Several years ago, a teacher friend of mine taught me something I had never thought about before. She said that she believed that we were mistaken to think of children as “blank slates” religiously. It is unfortunate, she said, that we think we must teach children primitive religious beliefs for many years before they can learn deeper things. She thought it was sad that we sometimes think that it is only mature adults who reach great spiritual “heights.” She believed that children have very deep, profound faith, and a great capacity for intimacy with God: tenderness, trust, compassion, awe, and reverence. She explained to me her sense that, as children, we are taught not to trust, and that our spontaneous sense of wonder and awe is eroded away as we are introduced to the “adult” world. Eventually, we grow, through life’s experiences, to be less innocent, less able to be intimate with God, less able to be religious, freely and spontaneously.
In many ways, this theory fits my experience and the words of Jesus. Our greatest desire is to return to innocence, to return to a sense of awe and wonder. It is a struggle for us to trust and surrender our defenses. We’ve become “street smart.” We have been wounded in the past by people whom we trusted and were hurt. We have become more critical readers of our world and are skillful diagnosticians of what is wrong with others. Maybe we have studied theology. Perhaps we know lots about the scriptures. Only then do we realize our priests and bishops and lay religious leaders are much more “human” than we gave them credit for earlier in our lives
How do we “turn and become like children”? First, I think we see how far we have strayed from innocence and vulnerability. I think Jesus’ invitation is a wonderful grace to stir our desire for a freer spirit. What about our fears? It really is “dangerous” to be more child-like. As we see so dramatically, children can be taken advantage of. But Jesus is inviting us to place our lives into the reign of God. He is inviting us to rely on God and to experience the humble dependence that we find in that place.
And what can we do to make it more possible for one another to experience this type of spiritual depth? “And whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me.” We can receive one another, in our poverty, simplicity, transparency. If we do, it will be easier for us all, and we will be receiving our hearts’ deepest desire.
May God Bless You and Grant You His Peace!