"I Love Baby George"

"Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise." So says the Bible.  So many times, children have been used by God to show me the depths of Holy Wisdom.  I was recently playing with grand daughter Margaret, aged four, and out of the blue she said, "I love baby George."  She then went right on with her play.  She was talking about her brother, who God willing, will be born in a little over four months. 

 Her statement started me thinking about the sacredness of human life, and in particular the life of the unborn.  It is my understanding that throughout human history, there have been schools of thought and individuals who have justified, sometimes reluctantly, and sometimes without remorse, the destruction of a human child either before birth or shortly after birth.  On paper, and from a distance, some of the arguments advanced seem to make some sense in a sad sort of way.  They seem ever so practical, or designed to allow the taking of an unborn or newborn life as the lesser of several evils, or to reach some greater good for the individual adults, or families, or societies concerned.  I have even heard some say that it would be better for the child when certain medical or environmental situations exist.  But whatever the arguments for taking the life of an unborn or recently born child may be, the Church has always stood against abortion and infanticide.  The consistant position of our Holy Mother the Church makes real sense.  If we truly believe that every human being is made in the image of God, we should do all we can to preserve and protect human life, especially when it is at its most vulnerable and defenseless. 

Along with my grand daughters and their parents, I pray for Baby George.  I don't know what he will be like, but I know that he is wonderfully made in the Imagio Dei, the image of God himself; and that Jesus Christ died and rose again that George might be reconciled to God the Father and live forever.  I know that a wonderful part of my daughter and son-in-law's marriage is that they model for all who know them the relationship between Christ and the Church, and that they have been favoured by God to participate with him in the act of creation.  Baby George, along with his sisters, is the proof of that.

With all my being, I hope and pray that all who read this, should they be faced with the reality of bearing a child, will choose life for the child, whatever the situation may be.  I know that there was a time in this country when maternal mortality was a significant possibility for many women, but thanks to the blessings of medical science, that is seldom the case these days in America.  Much more often, the decision to abort is made because of the impact a pregnancy or child would have on a career, or on a relatinship, or for some other reason.  I cannot imagine baby George being killed for such a reason.  Somehow, we would find a way for him to be welcomed, and loved, and treasured- however difficult it might be.  Might we all pray, and work for the day when every child will be carried to term, and every child loved, and nurtured, and provided for, and valued as a gift of God.