Of Ducklings and Hope

Not far from here, in a nursery classroom, there has been a very unusual arrival: five duck eggs in an incubator. The children are now eagerly waiting for them to hatch. They can already hear tiny cracks from within the eggs, and their teachers are helping them prepare to welcome and care for the ducklings for a few weeks after they emerge.

You can imagine how exciting this time of waiting is. The children know what is coming; they are preparing for these new little lives among them, waiting for that first crack that will mark the beginning of a new relationship.

As Christians, we are invited by the Lord Jesus to preserve a childlike spirit. There are many good reasons for this, but today we can reflect particularly on children's ability to recognise and contemplate the wonders of Creation, and to rejoice in something they have been told is yet to come.

We know that the world around us is full of life and beauty, even amidst its challenges and dangers. Yet we can sometimes forget that all we see, contemplate and marvel at is also a sign of something even more beautiful, more powerful and more perfect: the Kingdom of God in its fullness.

Let us therefore keep our eyes open and receive the beauty of Creation as a gift from God, capable of bringing us as much joy and wonder as children welcoming newly hatched ducklings. At the same time, let us remember that beyond what we can see, and beyond the trials we may experience, the Lord is preparing what He has promised to those who trust in Him: the fullness of joy and life in His presence.

We can therefore ask the Lord to strengthen within us the virtue of hope, so as to purify our desires, to help us place our trust in Christ's promises, and to rely on the grace of the Holy Spirit day by day (CCC 1817). In this way, as children of God, we may be able both to receive gratefully what has already been given to us and to rejoice in anticipation of what we cannot yet see.

If you would like to nurture your sense of wonder, please do join us this Sunday for the Pray and Play session after the 11.00 am Mass, which will be organised jointly with the Our Common Home team.