9781644135945

The Easter Cycle
the life of a man, and in the life of a Christian, is to become humble and childlike. God treasures
not our great accomplishments, our pretentious plans, and our mighty undertakings, nor even
our great works of self-denial and penance, nor our lengthy prayers, nor even our many pious
works. In themselves all these things do not honor God. All these can easily be poisoned and
ruined by our pride and ambition and self-will. What God prizes most and what makes us truly
great in the eyes of God, what opens to us the gates of the heavenly kingdom of grace, virtue,
and perfection, is the possession of a childlike spirit.
Not without reason God began the great work of redemption by becoming a child. All
sound spirituality begins with the spirit of childhood, and is based on that foundation. For this
reason the liturgy cries out to us: “As newborn babes, desire the rational milk without guile.”
“Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, he is the greater in the kingdom
of heaven.” This is the viewpoint of God, of Holy Mother the Church, and of all the saints. We,
too, should choose for ourselves the way of spiritual childhood, the way of simplicity.
He possesses this spirit of childhood and humility who, recognizing his own limitations and
weaknesses, submits himself completely to those who occupy God’s place in his regard. Such
a one desires to be small, dependent, and unimportant. In the spirit of simplicity he believes
what is told to him by others. He executes without question the commands given him by his
superiors, and does not inquire why a thing should be done. He carries out without question
the tasks imposed on him. Since he is filled with the spirit of faith, he does not exhaust himself
with worrying about ways and means of accomplishing his tasks. The spirit of childhood causes
him to die to his own wishes and to forget himself completely. Our spiritual progress depends
largely on our ability to forget ourselves, not on our profound insight, lofty meditations, and
great enlightenment. We advance in truth in the measure in which we renounce the world and
even our own wishes and desires. Once we have reached spiritual childhood, we no longer
view things with our own eyes. We abandon ourselves completely to the hand of providence.
We proceed on our way without bothering to observe whether the way is precipitous, stony,
or smooth; we look only at the hand that leads us, and pay no heed to the question of where
or how we are being led. We forget ourselves completely, and rest secure in the arms and on
the heart of our heavenly Father, just as the child rests secure on the bosom of its mother. If we
have really reached spiritual childhood, we seek no opportunity to display our striking virtues
before others. In this state we follow with heroic fidelity and self-sacrifice every inspiration of
grace, every command of our superiors, every opportunity to undergo hardship, every occasion
for mortification which God sends to us; we recognize the hand of God in everything that the
day may bring, and we accept it all with complete and joyful self-sacrifice. For the sake of God
we are filled with a spirit of kindness and friendliness no matter what our surroundings may
be. God alone and what is pleasing to Him become our sole interest.
“Perfection appears easy to me. I see that it suffices to recognize one’s own nothingness and to
rest in the arms of God like a child. I rejoice in being small, for it is the children alone and those
who become like little children who will be permitted to frequent the heavenly banquet.” 15
In the state of spiritual childhood, God is everything and man is nothing. In such a “child”
God accomplishes all that He desires precisely as He desires it. In such a soul God finds no obstacle
and no opposition. For this reason all true spiritual progress depends on the acquisition
15
St. Theresa of the Child Jesus.
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