The Theology of the Third Verse :: Thoughts on Christmas Carols (from the archives)

This was something I wrote last year, but I wanted to share it again :)  

It's the twelfth day of Christmas!  Are you still singing carols?  You can, you know!  I am.

There's no rule that says the carol-singing has to stop when the sun sets on Christmas day.  In fact, if you're a practicing Christian who's paying attention, you probably already know that "Christmas" is often considered atwelve-day ordeal - a dozen days of Christmas!  If you're a really attentive Catholic, you may know that the season doesn't officially end until the the Baptism of Jesus (celebrated on the Sunday after Epiphany).  And some people who really really like to extend their celebrating, keep it all going until the Feast of the Presentation in the Temple (all the way out there on February 2)!  

But even these Feasts and dates don't "contain" Christmas.  

Christmas isn't merely about celebrating the birth of Jesus on one particular, finite day over 2,000 years ago.  That was one day.  We cannot "be" there.  We can imagine it - all that there was to see, hear, smell - the stable, the hay-filled manger, the baby's soft breathing and tiny cries, the mother rocking, the skies filled with angels and light, "Glory to God in the highest!!,"  the astounded shepherds, the bleating of their sheep, a blinding star.  Indeed, we know these sights and sounds well from Scripture and from Christmas carols.  

For the most part, not exclusively, but for the most part, the first and second verses of the well-known Christmas carols tell the story - the one with the angels and shepherds and kings.  

 Everybody knows the first verses.  Lots of people know the second verses.  But if you never make it to the third and fourth (and fifth!) verses, you're missing the whole of the Christmas message.  Because celebrating Christmas is not about one day, or twelve, or 39.  Just as the songs are not over after the second verse, Christmas is not over after the Christmas season.  To be sure, we should never stop celebrating, because Christmas celebrates much more than the one-time birth of a baby.  It is about God made man, the Savior of the world entering into that world to change it from within, and the holy anticipation, joyful expectation, and life-giving hope that He will come again.  "Christmas" doesn't end because Christmas is about our the Savior, our present-day King of Kings and the expectation of and preparation for Christ's coming to Earth... again.  

This is the message that is so often conveyed in the later verses of Christmas carols.  Sing them to the end.  Theentire message of Christmas is often contained in the entirety of the song, from the birth of the baby, to his Saving work, to his promised return.  Sing to the end!  The meaning of the Christmas "story" - the donkey, the shepherds, the star, the gifts - finds its fullness in the theology of the third verse!

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Here are some lesser known verses you might enjoy...

Hail the Heaven born Prince of Peace

Hail the Sun of Righteousness

 

Light and life to all He brings

 

Ris'n healing in His wings

 

Christ the highest Heaven adored

 

Christ the everlasting Lord

Come desire of nations come

Fix in us Thy humble home

Come desire of nations come

Fix in us Thy humble home

(3rd verse of Hark! the Herald Angels Sing)

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Then let us all with one accord
Sing praises to our heavenly Lord,
That hath made heaven and earth of naught,
And with his blood mankind has bought.

(6th verse of The First Noel)

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O holy Child of Bethlehem,

Descend to us, we pray;

Cast out our sins and enter in,

Be born to us today.

We hear the Christmas angels

The great glad tidings tell:

Oh, come to us, abide with us,

Our Lord Emmanuel!

(4th verse of O Little town of Bethlehem)

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No more let sins and sorrows grow
Nor thorns infest the ground
He comes to make
His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found
Far as the curse is found
Far as, far as the curse is found

(3rd verse of Joy to the World)

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Yet with the woes of sin and strife
The world has suffered long
Beneath the heavenly strain have rolled
Two thousand years of wrong

And man at war with man hears not
The tidings which they bring
O hush the noise, ye men of strife
And hear the angels sing

O ye, beneath life's crushing load
Whose forms are bending low
Who toil along the climbing way
With painful steps and slow

Look now, for glad and golden hours
Come swiftly on the wing
O rest beside the weary road
And hear the angels sing

For lo, the days are hastening on
By prophets seen of old
When with the ever-circling years
Shall come the time foretold

When peace shall over all the earth
Its ancient splendors fling
And the whole world give back the song
Which now the angels sing

(3rd, 4th, and 5th verse of It Came Upon a Midnight Clear)

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Merry Christmas, dear friends!  He Lives.  He Reigns.  He will come again.  Merry Christmas!

Not Believing in Santa is Not Ruining Christmas for my Kids

At the risk of labeling myself a big fat Scrooge, I've got another post on why we don't maneuver Santa Claus into our family holiday traditions.  Humbug.    

But not so humbug, because I actually love Christmas, and gifts, and our family traditions.  And my kids really think Christmas is awesome.  What they may not possess in terms of holiday "magic," they make up for in joy, generosity, and excitement (food and presents can do that to a kid...)  

When Russ and I were engaged and spending long hours discussing "important" issues for our future family (ha, it's funny to look back on what we thought about having kids before we had kids...), the question of Santa came up.  Santa was never a part of my Christmas celebration growing up and I knew that he wouldn't be a factor in my own children's Christmas experience.  Russ had never heard tell of such a thing, but he heard me out.  In the end, he agreed with me.  I think no one was more surprised than he :)    

Here's what it boiled down to then and now.  

* Christmas is about Jesus.  Period.  And the gifts we get and the gifts we give are an extension of the gift of God made man - Jesus as a newborn baby 2000+ years ago and Jesus triumphant return at the end of time to close the deal (so to speak...)

* Spinning an elaborate tale about who Santa is and how he does what he's supposed to do is lying and manipulation I've never wanted to get into.   I can say with confidence that, in general, we refrain from telling intentional, sustained lies to our children.  It feels wrong to lead them down an untruthful path during their formative years, while there is so much real Truth that we're trying to instill at the same time.  The task of Catechises is already so monumental, I prefer to improve my chances at imparting the truths of the Faith by not confusing things like the birth of the savior with other non truths of the Faith.  (So, I'm really just trying to increase my success at parenting ;) )   I'm not comfortable with lying about something "big" and then shattering it as my kids get closer to their "difficult," "independent thinker" years, but at that same time asking them to deepen their beliefs in the other "big" - Christ, the Church, evil, salvation, etc...  I want my kids to trust me in the big things, and trust that the "big things" we've introduced to them are all real and unfading.    

* In addition to feeling wrong, lying can be exhausting!  I've seen friends burn out in the face of their kids' questions.  It's actually too much work (emotional, mental, and logistical!) for something that really has nothing to do with Christmas in the first place.  

* Santa Claus is St. Nicholas, you say?  Not really.  I addressed that here.  And even if he were, Christmas is not about St. Nicholas, so there'd be no need to be all "Santa is St. Nicholas is Santa" on Christmas Eve or Christmas day.  You could do that whole thing on December 6th if you wanted, but we don't.   

* The idea that Santa's watching and will only bring gifts to good children is often used as a behavioral management strategy by confused or lazy parents.  Please note: Not all parents that include Santa in their holiday traditions are confused and lazy!  I know children who believe in Santa and their parents don't use Santa Claus as a behavior management tool or idle threat.  However, Russ was in family mental health counseling for years and did see enough of this to know that there was something a little twisted in moms and dads dealing with rowdy or foolish kids by threatening that Santa wouldn't come on Christmas Eve if they didn't change their childish ways.   This is really hard for me to see, in the grocery store, parking lots, malls... kids being manipulated and threatened by the goings on of a fictional character.  

* I never want my children to think that gifts magically appear.  They don't.  We rarely deserve the gifts we're given, but they always come from someone who loves us enough to give them to us anyway (that's why Christmas is about Christ after all!)  Someone is behind every gift.  Someone made my children's happiness enough of a priority to choose something special, spend money on it, wrap it up, and deliver it.  That real life person deserves to be recognized and thanked.  Real people give gifts and my children will thank them personally and in writing for every gift they receive (though sometimes it may take us a couple weeks to get the thank you notes out...  ahem.) 

* Kids love presents.  (Um... so do I, actually...)  I spent our first few Christmases trying to downplay getting gifts with my kids, but that's a fool's errand, right?  As I mentioned before, the giving and receiving of gifts is one of the tangible, "incarnational" ways of spreading and sharing the true meaning of Christmas.  I try to let my kids enjoy the delight of receiving gifts, and hope that experiencing how good it feels will help motivate them to do the same for others.  God gives freely to us.  We should do the same to others.  And we can be comfortable in receiving joyfully and freely from those around us too!  

* Finally, even though we give and receive gifts as a celebration of, and witness to, the gift God gave us in his son, Christmas isn't just about the baby.  Christmas is also about the promise of his return!    And somehow, I don't think anyone ever looked at this....

.... and felt his heart swell with the true message of the season -- Unto us a child is born!! and Christ will come again!!  Or maybe they did.  I can't really judge what happens in the hearts of others.  What I do is keep the season in my preferred way -- the way that I think will best convey the message of the Messiah's birth and second coming in my home and with my family.  And believe me, my family and I wish you a very blessed Advent and Christmas season, regardless of how you keep the feast in your home and with your family!  

“God is here. This truth should fill our lives, and every Christmas should be for us a new and special meeting with God, when we allow his light and grace to enter deep into our soul.”

St. Josemaria Escriva, Christ is Passing By

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You may also like...

Our Epic Holiday Tradition: CHRISTMAS SNACK TABLE

 The Theology of the Third Verse (thoughts on Christmas Carols for Twelfth Night)

An Advent and Christmas Resource Round-Up

A Peg Doll Nativity (a craftiness show and tel)

Why We Don't Tell our Kids That St. Nicholas is Santa Claus (or vice versa)

A few weeks before Christmas last year I started writing your run-of-the-mill "Why We Don't "Do" Santa" post.  I never finished it.  I kept poking at it and changing it and rewriting it.  Finally it got to the point where I had to stop because I was burning through the precious time I had left to crochet hats and pot holders and slippers for Christmas gifts.  (I mean, it just wouldn't be Christmas without a garish array of mediocre yarn creations by Theresa, would it??)

I started playing around with that post again this year, but even as I was writing and rewriting it, something new occurred to me. Not only do we not "celebrate" Santa, we don't even equate him with St. Nicholas.  

Plenty of people argue that Santa Claus is a harmless modernization of St. Nicholas.  And I've heard the people who preach that we need to redeem the modern-day, commercialized Santa Claus and return him to his Christian roots in Nicholas. But in my home and for my family, I don't want St. Nicholas to be Santa Claus. For secular me, Santa is a waste of energy and misdirected holiday enthusiasm. For Catholic me, I'm pretty into St. Nicholas, and I'm uncomfortable distorting Nicholas so that he can be Santa Claus.  

I don't buy it when people say I can "believe in" Santa Claus because he's really Saint Nicholas.  (I think this is a superb post on it, even though I happen to disagree :) ) I understand that's where the tradition first began, but that's not what Santa Claus is now.   And we live now. 

When the kindly folk in the grocery store ask my children in a sticky sweet voice, "Is Santa coming to your house this year?" they mean this...

They don't mean, "Are you going to honor the fourth century Greek bishop, patron of children and sailors, by hanging your stocking 19 days after his feast day in the hopes over discovering a gift there in the morning?"  

To the grocery store inquiries, I usually offer my own sticky sweet smile (it's really just bits of candy cane stuck in my teeth) and reply, "We celebrated St. Nicholas’ Day earlier this month (the kids leave out their shoes and know that mom and dad leave treats and gifts there in honor of St. Nicholas)  and now we're busy preparing the gifts we'll give to others on Christmas."  And then hopefully my kids launch into a litany of the projects they're working on and the topic of conversation has been totally turned, because most strangers can't wrap their heads around the way we keep Christmas.

My kids don't "believe in" Santa Claus.  Santa Claus plays no role in our Christmas (except in making an appearance in the tune "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus," which I love.)  Santa does not come to our house.  Santa does not leave gifts.  Santa is not happily married in the North Pole, nor does he have a workshop there.  We tell our children that Santa Claus does not exist.  (It's ok if you think I'm ruining my kids.  I don't.)   

And Santa is not St. Nicholas.

I believe the person of St. Nicholas would be lost if my husband and I embellished the traditions and legends surrounding that saint into lies we'd tell our children about Santa Claus.  This is not how we honor saints.  It is inconsistent with all the things we ("we" means "husband and I" :) ) teach our children about venerating and honoring the Saints.  Catholics are not required to hold any particular devotion to the Saints, but if we choose to, we meditate on their lives of Faith, strive to imitate their holy example,  and appreciate the goodness and glory of God in His work through them.  We teach our children about the virtuous lives of the Saints, the miracles attributed to them, and the power of their intercession for particular needs.  Many saints, especially those from the early Church, are surrounded by a cloud of legends.  We happily teach our children about these legends, how they may have developed, why they are significant, and how such stories can still bring glory to God even though the truth of the matter is not always clearly defined.  But we don't invent miracles or attribute magical happenings to saints and claim that they are still taking place to this day outside of the approval of the Church.   That is a mis-representation of the Faith and of the honored position of Saints in the Church, and is an affront to the traditions of the Catholicism.

I actually think that it would be better to believe in Santa Claus as a secular bringer of gifts, completely detached from the name, concept, and reality of St. Nicholas, than to tell our children in all sincerity that the 4th century bishop is also a present-day toy maker plying his trade in the frigid north.

It misrepresents the real Nicholas.  The little that is known of him is rich and uplifting.  He deserves, as all Saints, to be honored for who he was - not for what I pretend, or speculate, him to be.   

To attribute gifts and magic to a beloved saint (and to encourage my kids to believe it) would probably also not be a great witness to our non-Catholic friends who may already be scrutinizing our often misunderstood veneration of the saints and our appreciation of our Faith traditions and legends.  And, in my opinion, it just does not give glory to God or credit to the Catholic Faith to fabricate fanciful tales about canonized Saints. But upholding their actual lives and deeds are awesome for our good and God's glory. ("Veneration given to saints is giving glory to God in them and through them; their graces are God's gift to them, and their example is our hope." I found that in Butler's Lives of the Saints, so it must be so ;) )  

So, our children are very familiar with the legends of St. Nicholas that make him a patron of children (you know, like restoring the pickled boys to life) and a generous giver of secret gifts (the old coins-for-the-girls-in-the-stockings story). Our kiddos know that my husband and I give them gifts in honor of Nicholas on his feast day. We certainly invoke his intercession, and while we heartily believe that miraculous events could absolutely occur as a direct result of the intercession of St. Nicholas, we have never told our children that gifts under the tree are those miraculous doings.

There is no other saint that we honor by changing his or her name, insisting that the legends and traditions surrounding him or her are actually going to happen again on a specific night, and celebrate him or her on a day that is not actually their Church-appointed feast day.  It's so absurd that it's hard to even make a decent comparison, so here's a weak one...  St. Patrick is a respected Catholic saint throughout the world.  He's even in good standing among non-Catholics.   He's so much fun we're going to call him Naomh Pádraig (Blessed Patrick) and we're going to say that 19 days after his March 17 feast day, on April 5, he's going to drive all of the snakes out of our backyard (because he did that once in Ireland, and now he's going to do it again.  here.  on April 5.)  It's going to be magical!  And I'm really going to be the one that moves the snakes (or worms, as the case may be in urban Western New York) , but I'm going to convince my children that Naomh did it.   And when my children find out in their tween years that he doesn't really come and rid our neighborhood of snakes each year, they will not mind in the least that I perpetuated this fanciful story to them and they will still be interested in learning everything they can about the real Patrick and they will be drawn into a personal devotion to the real Saint, until they have their own snake-fearing children and realize it's time to resurrect Naomh Padraig.  

See?  It's kind of weird.  It's not really honoring St. Patrick at all.  Calling the modern-day Santa Claus a way to honor St. Nicholas makes about as much sense to me.  My family and I choose to honor St. Nicholas on his feast day with prayer, reading about his life, feasting, and gifts.   My husband and I have not attempted to honor him by telling our kids that he's actually going to show up again, tiptoeing around on our roof a few weeks later.   Nor do we honor any other saint by convincing our kids that he or she is coming to do X, Y, or Z on any given day. So if we were going to insist that Nicholas was going to do the whole roof bit on December 24, we're not really prepared to explain to them why it's just St. Nicholas and why Saints Ursula, Felix, Kunegunda, and Joan of Arc have forsaken our rooftop.

Who knows.  Maybe all of them are up in Heaven now, looking down on poor, misguided me, laughing and shaking their heads at silly little Theresa.  We’ve been on her roof several times and she still doesn't get it! And she's so, so wrong about all of it anyway! Maybe they’ll question me when we finally meet (and Oh!! I hope we do!) as to why I was so Scroogy and unimaginative with making Christmas magic.  Won’t the joke be on me, then!  I’m sure I won’t have any answer than, I love St. Nicholas, and I’m full of the Christmas spirit, but I just never found it necessary to spin tales about the one to enhance the other for myself or for my children.

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My opinions are strong, but they're just that - opinions.  They're important only insofar as they're how I approach holiday traditions and Christmas with my family.  I know a lot of parents (most of them way better at parenting than me) that love celebrating Santa and St. Nicholas, or Santa as St. Nicholas.  Do you believe me when I say, that's ok because it actually has nothing to do with my family?  It's true.  So if you have some different thoughts or opinions or ways you do things with your family, I'm cool with that too, and I'd love for you to chat about them here.  (Except I should clarify, that by "cool" I mean "I can accept our differences"  and you really shouldn't interpret "cool" in the "impressive, hip, or sophisticated" sense.  No one has ever accused me of the second definition ;) )  

Creative and Contented: Large Families Living in Small Homes (a Mini Series!!)

Large family living in a small home?  "Large" and "small" can be sort of subjective, so I hesitate to say that we are either a large family or that we have a small home.  Despite the fact that we often feel crowded, curse the tiny shoe-clogged entryway, and play musical beds every afternoon at rest time, there are plenty of families living in spaces much smaller than ours.  

Maybe it's because "small" is so subjective, but I often feel like these fours walls are closing in on us... there's more people, they're getting bigger every year, and there's more stuff.  Seven people in 1,400 square feet is not unreasonable, but in the day to day, it feels unreasonable that I have to make it work.   When we moved in over 6 years ago with just two children, living in a three bedroom home with one and half bathrooms was easy breezy.  Now, managing the needs of a family of seven in the same space tends to either make my blood boil or exhaust me.  Either way, I'm usually left thinking, "there must be something better out there."  

My husband and I often discuss "should we move to a bigger home?" or "what can we do to this place to make it more livable?"  We never get anywhere because we don't want to spend the money to buy bigger, an addition on our current home eats up yard space and doesn't increase the value of our home, and we actually love our neighborhood and home and aren't dying to get out of here.  I just need a little more "here" here - like another bathroom, a family room, an extra bedroom, a bigger entryway, a mudroom, an eat-in kitchen, and maybe even a school room as long as I'm listing and can use as many commas as I want.  Those things would make life here problem-free!  (cause, man, do we have problems...)

I had the idea to host this series by guest bloggers because I quickly realized that more than house hunting and do-it-yourself-This-Old-House-style projects, what I really needed was an attitude adjustment about the home we already have... in the condition it's currently in.  

As I read the articles that were submitted by the guest writers you'll meet this week, I was inspired by their wisdom and experience.  In addition to the obvious decluttering (KonMari, I'm looking at you),  I identified a few things that would help me live more contentedly in our current home:

* I need to practice deeper and more habitual gratitude for the blessing of the home we have, as well as for the less "visible" blessings such as our good neighbors, the relative safety of where we live, and our proximity to my parents.

* "The grass isn't always greener" in the larger, perfectly planned home we're always one the lookout for.  We can't know what difficulties would come with another home, so it's foolish to imagine that the future home of our dreams is made with sunshine and flowers and has wild unicorns that graze on the dew-dropped grass of the picturesque wooded lot.  
* Perhaps this home, much like my vocation as a mom, has been given to me so that I have opportunities to improve in my deficiencies (patience, orderliness, organization, high levels of neediness as far as personal space and me-time is concerned...).  All the "problems" that I imagine would be solved in a larger home (more personal space = better patience, spacious rooms = less kids quarreling over "he's in my way", more cupboards = less stuff on the floor)  might actually be part of my virtue training if we stay here and we have to conquer them (instead of just sweep them under the rugs of our new and ginormous home.)  (Hehe... yes.  I'm going to stick with this growth in holiness argument.  That's why we're staying in this house :) )
  
* Basing current decisions (like a move or an addition) on stumbling blocks you imagine encountering in the future is not always wise.  I tend to get sweaty and panicky when I imagine all my children older and larger (like teenage boy large) and trying to get our family in and out of our teeny tiny bottleneck entryway at once.  I silently shriek "this will never work!" when I try to picture three or four adult-size people passing each other in the narrow upstairs hallway or stooping over the bathroom sink to brush teeth.  But I get all worked up about something that hasn't happened yet and which I can't even clearly picture - my adult children won't barrel through the tiny hallway and swarm the sink all that once like my "children" children do.  I can't assume that my adult children will be tripping over each other getting in and out of the house because (God willing!) they'll have the patience, good judgment and coordination that comes with age, and somehow I imagine we'll all make it through the door unscathed.  The majority of my children now possess very little patience, good judgement, and coordination but it's senseless to assume it will always be that way and buy a bigger house tomorrow because I'm "trouble shooting" the future stampede of large children I envision in the hallway.  

* Declutter.  Oh wait, I already mentioned that.  

The moms who will share their small home experiences with us this week are sure to inspire you!  They have inspired me to commit to prayerful gratitude and contentment and have given me some ideas on practical solutions that will help in the day to day operations in our home.  I look forward to sharing their stories with you and hope you'll welcome them warmly to Ordinary Lovely <3 

In the mean time, I invite you click on over to Ronni's at The Screenwriter's Wife.  Earlier this year, Ronni wrote a great post on how her family of four makes it work in a 700 square foot home.  She was generous enough to let me share the link with you, and I think you'll be impressed with some of the ideas she has for saving space and making their small space livable!  Thank you, Ronni for sharing your wisdom with us!  

How Our Family of Four Lives Happily in 700 Sq. Ft.

(and Small Home Ideas)

And don't forget to check back each day this week for a new post in the series!  

my kiddos last fall in front of our lovely home!

Today I Told My Children About Abortion

(some of this was written yesterday - the day the conversation took place, and some was written today.  Sorry if that makes for confusing reading.  I didn't want to lessen yesterday's emotions by switching everything to "yesterday."  Writers prerogative, I guess!)

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Until today, my kids took for granted that a mother's belly was a naturally safe and cozy place for babies to grow from sesame seed size to english cucumber size to small watermelon size (or giant watermelon size, 'cause some moms have that kind belly going on.  Like me, usually.)   

Until today, my kids probably believed that everyone got as excited and hyper as they do when they hear news like, "Hey guys!  Our new baby inside Mom has eyelashes now!"

Until today, my kids assumed every baby was loved, even before it was born, by parents that would rejoice like we rejoice when we finally meet our new one - "it's a boy!!!"

Until today, my kids mostly thought that all families welcomed babies like we welcome ours - with copious amounts of affection that often borders on "CAREFUL you're going to smother him!" 

Today I told my children about abortion.*

It was wretched.   

I still feel raw from the conversation.  I don't know that you can ever feel "fine" after revealing such evil to your children.  

I didn't plan on doing it.  I hadn't made any mental notes on how it would go, what my approach would be, or what I would cover.  It just sort of happened, and as awful as a conversation about abortion must naturally be, our conversation could not have gone better.  It was grace-filled and Spirit-led.  My heart is so overwhelmingly grateful for that.  

It was good, but hard.  I cried.  My children cried.  They asked a lot of questions.  I had good answers (thank you, Holy Spirit.)  They asked if our own baby James was in danger and I had to specify unborn babies.  They were shocked.  You are right to be, my children! 

They asked how "the people" come to get the mothers and do this to them.  They were silent and tearful when I replied, Mother's choose it.  

My children asked if we should call the police.  They said surely the police would be after the people that do this.  I felt my throat start to tighten.  "It's legal," I whispered.  It felt like the hardest thing I had to say up to that point.  Their mouths dropped open and their eyes got wide with disbelief.  They were floored.  My heart sunk even deeper.  Then they got angry.  You are right to be angry!  

Our discussion ended with the the sorrowful truth that God's laws are not always the laws of our country.  We came back to this over and over again.  Christian living is not now, nor has ever been, for the faint of heart.  

My own heart, hurting from the conversation, was reassured by the reactions of my children.  My sons criticized the judges who declared abortion legal and began to plot their own ascent to judge-dom in order to reverse what had been done.  They asked, "can't we get all the people together who know this is wrong and go tell the lawmakers to vote on what we want?"  They envisioned the March for Life before they even knew it existed!  They wanted to form groups that would pray to end abortion and promote a culture of life... perhaps one day they'll be eager participants in teens for life group!  When confronted with the horrid facts, they wanted to be evangelizers, and sidewalk counselors, and educators, and advocates for adoption and legal change all at once, right now!!   

Jesus' conversion of hearts, perhaps using us as prayer warriors or active instruments in the midst of the fray, is the only answer to the problem of abortion in this country.  While nothing is impossible for God, our culture devalues life to such an extreme it often seems like the prayer to convert enough hearts is a hopeless one.  But last night, after re-visting all these topics with my boys for a second time in one day (to make sure lingering questions and concerns were addressed before bedtime), and this time with my husband as part of the conversation, we prayed for the strength to uphold the laws of God in our hearts and family even when they are at odds with the laws of our nation.  We prayed for the conversion of our hearts and for a complete and total reversal of the laws which legalized abortion under any circumstance.   After our prayer, we said goodnight and the boys picked up a book that they had previously agreed would be the one Aaron would read to Dominic that night, and they went off to bed. It wasn't until later in the evening that I realized which book they had chosen - it was the story of Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad.  They had chosen to read about the brave men and women that fought a previous blight on the American conscience - slavery.  American slavery - for nearly one hundred years, the laws of our country were not in accord with the laws of God.  And they were changed.  It gave me a glimmer of hope at the end of a day that had drained me emotionally - the day when a sweet and sacred part of my children's innocence had been permanently taken from them.  I hated what I told them that day, but I went to bed with a prayer of hope.  It has happened before.  The law of the land was changed.  "There is neither slave nor free... you are all one in Christ..."  The law of God was eventually upheld as our nation's own.  Perhaps an end to abortion is not as hopeless as it sounded to me when the words were coming out of my own mouth, as I felt like I tore at my children with one new awful truth after another.  Perhaps it is the young ones, the passionate ones, our children who instinctively know right from wrong, and who want to charge a-blazing against injustice, who will lead, by their prayers and example and leadership, our country into an era where all human life is valued as a gift from God and the laws of God and the laws of our nation will not be at odds.  I pray my children will be a part of that triumph.  Maybe then I can believe that the awfulness of telling them today, the sickening feeling of stealing away bits of their innocence, was part of what I (and untold numbers of Christian parents) sacrificed for the victory.  For now though, it just feels rotten and I hate it.  

*   *   *   *   *   *

* I just wanted to add a few notes for my own benefit as well as for yours, perhaps...

Some of my friends and their children attended the local Women Betrayed Rally yesterday.  I had hoped to take the kids but wasn't able to make it due to a previous engagement with the city health board guy involving rat poison and stern warnings to the kids to stop leaving food outside....  Instead of the rally we were able to go to a nearby Adoration chapel and pray for our friends who were there and for an end to abortion at the very time the rally was starting.  It was because of this sudden need to go to the chapel in the middle of the day (which we don't normally do) that I felt like I owed my children an explanation.  I also wanted them to be able to pray specifically for the intention that was dragging them away from their morning play.  That was why I "out-of-the-blue" decided to tell them about abortion yesterday.

I was able to speak to my oldest two alone, and it was with them that I had the majority of this conversation.  They are 7 and 9.  I didn't feel it was appropriate to regale my little girls with all of this information at their age.  They are 3 and 5.  My five year old knows some, but I believe she only has a very vague understanding of what we were actually talking about - for now, her fervent prayer is for babies who don't get to be with their families, and I think that's an appropriate amount of knowledge for my five year old right now.  Each family will obviously have there own ideas on when to share information and how much to share.

Which brings me to one of the final things we spoke about with our boys.  We want them to talk to Dad and Mom about this topic if they have more questions or need to voice concerns or prayers.  We have asked them to not speak about it openly with their little sisters and we have asked them not to speak about it with friends.  That last part was a tricky one because they very emphatically expressed interest in being a part of the pro-life movement to spread awareness and to change hearts.  My husband and I reminded them though, that parents have the right and responsibility to speak to their own children about such a serious and difficult topic first, and that the parents of some of their friends may not think their children are ready for this conversation yet.  It was hard to tell the boys to "not speak out" after having had two lengthy discussion with them about how we need to "speak out," but Russ and I felt confident it was the right thing.  For now, it's a conversation we will keep among our family and in our prayers, and we'll soon need to find appropriate outlets for our kids to be active and visible members of the pro-life movement.