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Wednesday, 31st of May, the feast of the Queenship of Our Lady was a day of mixed feelings. Stephan and Edith of Swakopmund, Namibia, gave birth to their first child. A sonar scan had already shown some irregularity. The doctors were quick to advise an abortion. Nevertheless, our good couple would leave everything in the hands of God. Above all, murder, which abortion is, was out of the question. Much rather they would carry the child until his birth while informing the priest of a possible premature death. Indeed their first born was abnormal. Five minutes after the birth, Fr. Daniels baptised the child in the presence of parents, doctor and nurses. Since there was no chance that he would live, Father also confered the Sacrament of Confirmation. This a priest can do when there is serious danger of death One hour later the child, Benedikt, at the very moment that Father gave him another blessing, died. Truly, it was a moment of mixed feelings. Who could ever explain the natural bond between parents and child? Perhaps they had not known him, and yet, they knew him. Love is stronger than death! Who can describe the sorrow that parents feel when they loose their little one? Yet their faith turned their sorrow to joy in a certain way because they knew that their little Benedikt was already in heaven. This is a certainty of faith, since, without any personal sin, armed with both the characters of Baptism and Confirmation, such a soul, by the promise of God, goes straight to heaven.
As I looked down upon this small child, I thought of the parable of the workers called into the vineyard. “The last shall be first and the first last.” Another great mystery of redemption also came to mind: “Many are called, but few are chosen.” So many babies are born and die prematurely, and yet, how many of them have the privilege, or rather the singular grace of being baptised and even receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation? It may sometimes be hard to understand the divine decree that without baptism a child cannot enter into heaven but will go to Limbo. This knowledge fills our hearts with all the more joy when we see the little Benedikt receiving the grace of eternal beatitude. And why he and not so many others? Far be it from me to search into the Divine Will which is known by God alone, but, what we can say without doubt is that the faith of the parents played an enormous role in their child being saved. “Everything you do unto me, I will repay you a hundred fold” said Our Lord. Instead of taking the affair into their own hands, they placed it all in God's. He will not be outdone. For their act of submission to the Divine Will, He received their little Benedikt into the arms of His Eternal Beatitude.
Two days later, on the Vigil of Pentecost we buried the little saint. Since the Vigil is a first class, it had to be celebrated in red. Neverthless the rest of the burial was done in white. White is a colour indicating purity. For a priest it might have felt a little strange to do the burial without the absolution at the end of Mass. But the absolution is necessary for sinners. Little Benedikt was without sin. A little saint in heaven! Deo Gratias.
