Today during Mass - during Communion, to be precise - I witnessed a scene that made me feel sad. It made me say those words that young John Bosco said of the priests who never replied to a simple greeting: "If I were a priest, I would not do that!"
The scene was of a small boy (J), aged 6 or 7, approach the priest distributing communion, along with his mother. I've seen and interacted with this boy and for him his small toy, Teddy, is the best thing in the world. So every Sunday he brings it along with him to Mass. Today he surprisingly brought in another toy - appeared like a tiger or a honey bee. But what he does every time he approaches the priest for a blessing, instead of the Communion, is that he stands there holding his toy high up, for the priest to give it also a blessing!! I guess his logic is, if I can be blessed, why not bless Teddy too!
Unfortunately none of the priests so far have obliged him! And every time his mother has to drag him off the line! My simple question: What does one lose by giving that toy a gentle tap? You don't even have to utter a blessing. Just smile and tap the toy! J does not want anything else! He's not asking for his Teddy to be baptised as per the ritual. Just a blessing! And even if a priest did bless the toy, will the latter then become the body of Christ? Or will his priestly power diminish?
If blessing a toy is going to brighten the day of a little 6-year old, and with him that of his whole family, I'd gladly do it every day! In fact, it is not the boy who lost out on a blessing today, it is we grown ups, especially the clergy, and the Church as a whole, who've lost out on the blessing of a happy child!
The scene was of a small boy (J), aged 6 or 7, approach the priest distributing communion, along with his mother. I've seen and interacted with this boy and for him his small toy, Teddy, is the best thing in the world. So every Sunday he brings it along with him to Mass. Today he surprisingly brought in another toy - appeared like a tiger or a honey bee. But what he does every time he approaches the priest for a blessing, instead of the Communion, is that he stands there holding his toy high up, for the priest to give it also a blessing!! I guess his logic is, if I can be blessed, why not bless Teddy too!
Unfortunately none of the priests so far have obliged him! And every time his mother has to drag him off the line! My simple question: What does one lose by giving that toy a gentle tap? You don't even have to utter a blessing. Just smile and tap the toy! J does not want anything else! He's not asking for his Teddy to be baptised as per the ritual. Just a blessing! And even if a priest did bless the toy, will the latter then become the body of Christ? Or will his priestly power diminish?
If blessing a toy is going to brighten the day of a little 6-year old, and with him that of his whole family, I'd gladly do it every day! In fact, it is not the boy who lost out on a blessing today, it is we grown ups, especially the clergy, and the Church as a whole, who've lost out on the blessing of a happy child!
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