A Heart Contrite and Humbled

Saturday, August 17th Readings Reflection: Saturday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Today’s Responsorial Psalm implores God to “[c]reate a clean heart in me.” The psalmist, recognizing that burnt offerings are worth nothing without an accompanying conversion of heart, offers to God “a contrite spirit.” This Psalm pairs perfectly with today’s Gospel reading, which is a mere two verses long. Despite its brevity, today’s Gospel contains a beautifully powerful message: “Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them; for the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”

In writing on this Gospel passage, St. Jerome said that Our Lord’s words “[show] that it was not years, but disposition that determined [Christ’s] judgment, and that the reward was promised to such as had innocence and simplicity.” The heart of a child is innocent and simple. Before he reaches the age of reason, which is approximately around seven years of age, a child is unable to commit a sin, because his intellect has not yet developed to the point where he is fully responsible for his actions on a moral level. During this time, a child is incredibly impressionable and believes everything he is told. When shown love, a child will simply and innocently love in return.

God wants us to possess these same characteristics in our relationship with Him. While we are capable of sinning—and unfortunately do so daily—we must strive to uproot all attachment to sin that clouds our innocence. The Sacrament of Penance washes our souls clean from the stain of sin so that we need not be ashamed of whatever darkened our past. As my priest continually reminds us, shame need never prevent us from turning to God’s mercy in the Sacrament of Penance. God wants nothing more than to welcome us back into full union with Him by means of the priest’s absolution.

Once we have returned to a state of innocence, or at least the state of grace, we can then pray for the grace to become simple like a child. St. Therese of Lisieux is perhaps the most famous model of this childlike simplicity, with her emphasis on love as the key to attaining Heaven. Rather than dwelling on our shame and despairing over our habits of sin, we must focus on loving God and turning to him with “a heart contrite and humbled,” as today’s Psalm says. May God give us the grace to do this with simplicity and innocence, not becoming discouraged but always clinging to Him with the love of a child.

Public domain