WEEKLY REFLECTION 

“Jesus, called the Twelve, and said to them Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me”  

Christians of the first centuries took very seriously the call of Christ. They not only took care of their own children with love, but they created a program for the nurturing and education of children abandoned by pagans. They were able to surround them with love. 

Every Christian is bound to invest his life in his child and to take him into his arms like a precious treasure. For this Christ calls each disciple, so that such an attitude should grow each of them. To encourage this, Jesus identifies himself with the child: "Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me." 

Where do orphans live? 

43.4 million orphans live in Africa, 87.6 million orphans live in Asia, and 12.4 million orphans live in Latin America and the Caribbean. 1.5 million children live in public care in Central and Eastern Europe alone. At any given point there are over 500,000 children in the U.S. Foster Care system. Of that number, approximately 100,000 are waiting to be adopted.  

The countries with the most orphans are India (31 Million), China (20), Nigeria (12), Brazil (4.2), Bangladesh (almost 5), Ethiopia (5), Indonesia (4.8 million), and the Democratic Republic of Congo (4). About 135,000 children are adopted in the United States each year. Every child is created in the image of God and deserves to belong to a loving family! 

Whoever would reject or harm a child, would be condemned to a life of unhappiness. How difficult then to accept Christ. How difficult it is to experience this conversion of hearts which is the only full guarantee of peace and happiness.   

It is not hard to see that the happiest people on earth are those who love children. The easiest way to cure selfishness and fill hearts with love is by the love  we give to every child conceived and born, those children who are own and those who are someone else's. 

Being able to adopt a child with love is one of the greatest works, we can do and which, therefore, determines the size of our hearts. If we want to be like Christ, we must stand up for the unborn. If we want to be like Christ, then we must set an example to children of the Catholic faith and to show our love of God and others. 

Reflections courtesy of Evengeli.net.