I Only Allow This One Thing in Church
By Gaby Smith
When my son was a toddler, I would allow him to bring toys to Mass to keep him occupied and still. This turned into a messy and noisy ordeal. Toy planes and cars were everywhere in the pew.
What was worse, is that these were wooden pews. Let’s just say all eyes were on us from time to time (or at least that’s how I felt).
I knew something had to give until one day a colleague suggested I only bring religious literature to Mass for him to read. I was terrified to try this. My wiggly son was occupied with the toy cars and planes. How can a book keep him occupied for an hour when he’s 3 and doesn’t even understand the Mass?!
I took this to prayer and decided to give it a try.
One courageous Sunday I took out his children’s Bible and saint books and told him this was the only thing we are taking to church from now on.
This is the first time where I started to correlate the activities of the Mass to his books.
I explained how Jesus in the Bible performed the way the Mass is performed today. I explained the love of the saints in his book to the love they have for Jesus in heaven and in the Mass.
It took a while to adjust to this rule of only bringing religious books to Mass, but now, it’s a way of life.
So, do you dare?
Put down the toy cars and coloring books and take a chance. Your children will thank you.
We had a “church” bag when my kids were little. It included children’s religious books, child rosary and prayer doll. It worked well and now I use it for our grandchildren!