Let the Children Come to Me - Algona Newspaper Article - 5/19/22

One of the Family, Frederick George Cotman, 1880

(Note: this is a more complete version of the article that was published in the Emmetsburg Newspaper.)

Approximately 800,000+ abortions are performed yearly in the United States. About 3,500 abortions take place here in Iowa each year. Think about those numbers for a moment. About as many people as live in Emmetsburg are killed before birth in Iowa. More people than live in Des Moines are killed yearly in the United States. Those are some sobering numbers.

Another sobering number is the Total Fertility Rate (number of children a woman has in her lifetime) here in the US. In 2008 we were right at replacement rate (2.1), but now, just about a decade later, we’re at 1.64, the lowest in recorded history. How exactly this will impact our nation as a whole is currently unknown, but it won’t be pretty. Just consider how many things have changed here in Kossuth county since 1940 when our population was 26,630, to today when our population is at 14,828. Realizing how many things have closed around here (schools, churches, clubs, businesses, etc), in the past few decades, imagine that happening all over the country and to a greater extent around here.

Both of these numbers reveal something about us and our nation: children are not our priority. But they are for our Lord: “They were bringing children to Jesus that He might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them. But when Jesus saw it, He was indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” And He took them in His arms and blessed them, laying His hands on them.”

Jesus loves children, so much so that He went to the cross to die for them and win God’s kingdom for them. Children are our greatest treasure and asset. The world is filled with darkness and evil, but children make this life a brighter place. All of our wealth we amass can be easily lost, as it is at death, but our children are the one thing we can take with us. When we’re sick or dying, we don’t want to be surrounded by our stuff, we want to be surrounded by our kids. Children are a heritage from the Lord. They should be neither killed in the womb nor prevented, but welcomed and received with joy!

Children truly are a heritage from the Lord, and it is through our children that our history and traditions are passed on from one generation to the next. The values, virtues, and traditions which we want to see continue are dependent on parents handing down their culture to their children and instilling it in their hearts. Thus, if we desire our communities and parishes to flourish, we must focus on where it really matters: the home.

For the past few generations the home has been downplayed. The home has been relegated to a place for rest, relaxation, and entertainment. While those things are enjoyable, we all recognize that they’re not the most important things in life. There’s work to be done, money to be made, the bills don’t pay themselves! Moreover, if we want bigger, newer, better toys, we have to make more money. Therefore, careers and money are elevated while the home is considered less important.

The Merry Family, Jan Steen, 1668
Jan Steen drew many comedic paintings, and a few versions of this one. It depicts a merry family, assisted by copious amounts of drink. The moral of the story is described by the note on the mantle: "As the old sing, so shall the young pipe." Meaning that children will learn their codes of behavior from their parents (in this case bad behaviors).  

    

But that’s simply not true whatsoever! The home is not only a place for rest, relaxation, and entertainment, a place to go and chill out at the end of the day. The home is the heart of civilization and the source of all culture and human flourishing. The home is the primary place of work since the most important people in your life live there and they need to be fed, clothed, housed, taught, and cleaned. The home is the primary place of learning, because the words, actions, and attitudes of the parents train the children more powerfully than any teacher or textbook. The home is the most frequented place of worship, since the faith is most effectively taught in the home, at the family altar. The home is the most powerful place for handing down traditions since the prayers you say, the meals you eat, the books you read, the habits you form, will shape the lives of your descendents for generations.

So when we delay marriage, or we choose to have only a couple of kids, or we relegate the home to just a place to veg out, we’re dramatically changing the lives of our children and altering the culture for everyone else in our communities. It’s past time we rethink our priorities. Careers and money are short-lived, but our children are eternal. A common regret I hear is that people chose to have few children and they wished they’d have had more while they were able. 

If you’re past the age of child-bearing, know that Christ loves you and all things are made new in Him, don’t let your regrets burden you, instead be freed to tell those younger than you before it’s too late for them. If you’re young there’s still time to have more children. You don’t need the extra money, its pleasure won’t last, but your children will.

If things look bad right now in our nation and communities, lift up your heads and see that your redemption is drawing near! Also, don’t let the demographic winter drive you to despair and hopelessness, change is still possible. In only four generations one couple can make a powerful change: a husband and wife have six kids, those six kids get married and each have six kids, totalling thirty-six grandkids, those thirty-six grandkids each get married and each have six kids, totaling 216 great-grandkids. Within just four generations those two people became 260 people, not counting spouses. Think of the impact that one couple can make over the course of a lifetime. Positive change is still possible. We can always bring the traditions back. We can reprioritize our faith, children, home, and church. God loves children, and so do we!

In the holy name of Jesus,

Rev. John Henry Koopman

Just a picture of a family on a farm in 1919.