Tower Topics ~ Winter 2004

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'They shall be called the children of God'

I will spare you the proud-dad bragging that my co-workers have to endure about how my four children scored 10 soccer goals over the weekend (Oops! That one kinda slipped out), or how well they did on their recent grade cards. But I don't want to mislead you.

I am going to brag.

When Abbot Gregory turned in this issue's letter to our readers, I once again was reminded that I work for a man of conviction and integrity who is sincere in his efforts to imitate Jesus Christ. I know, I know, this sounds like a shameless case of buttering up the boss, but I can assure you I had my performance review in September, well before I wrote this.

Abbot Gregory chose to address the corrosive moral decay and devastation that war wreaks on the spirit, mind and body of everyone involved. His is a necessary statement of Gospel truth added to a debate that has polarized our nation with a rancor and hostility not seen since the Civil War. Please take the time to read it.

Now for the bragging.

As I read through the Abbot's letter, I glanced up at the bulletin board above my desk and, with a surge of pride, saw a pencil-and-magic-marker picture drawn by my oldest son Jacob on March 20, 2003, the day after U.S. forces crossed the border into Iraq. I learned later that as news of invasion dominated TV screens and newspaper headlines, the boys of Jacob's class - being boys - were drawing pictures of tanks, war planes and bombs. A few even conjured images of people being killed. I guarantee you, at age 8, I would have done the same, and in quite exquisite color and detail.

Let me describe Jacob's picture: It shows our parish church - brightly colored stained-glass windows, bells ringing. On the roof are an American flag and a cross. From the upper left corner, the sun shines down, and the sky above the church is filled with bursts of fireworks, a lone fluffy cloud, and a pair of valentine hearts. In front of the church is a police car, its lights flashing, and an armed police officer who seems to be guarding the building. Fairly good artwork for an 8-year-old.

But there's more.

Across the front of the Church, scrawled in a child's hand, are the words, "We Want War to Stop!!! We are sad!!!!"

Jacob is a red-blooded American boy, so he of course couldn't resist the urge to draw a big, gray war plane soaring through the sky. But, unlike those drawn by Jacob's classmates or by his father when he was a boy, this one is not dropping bombs or firing bullets. Instead, it is towing a yellow banner with big black words: "War Stop!"

Hanging just beneath Jacob's drawing on my cluttered bulletin board is a card inscribed with the Beatitudes. If I can brag one last time, I think my son has pretty good grasp on those foundational assurances, especially the one that says, "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God."

Peace.

Dan Madden
Director of Development and Communications

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