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Today, Our Lord is talking about “Vine” and “branches.” I would like to talk to you about little branches, literally, lit-tle branches, little kids. (I haven’t inflicted this on you for four years. I think the first time I did this little branch thing was when I first arrived - Thank You, God! - in this parish in May of 1998. And, what I mean by “little branches,” I mean little kids.... little kids.

When I was in England (I saved up for a long time so I could spend ten days in England.) I was in the little town of Exeter, and I was in a Catholic bookstore, and I found a little book, called “Children’s Letters to God,” which became world-famous and there were a couple of editions. You’ve probably heard of it, read it. But I thought, in that little town of Exeter, “Wow! What a great gimmick!” because I taught English and Religion in high school and college. I thought kids who could use some extra credit in high school, high school seniors, when I get back an extra-credit project would be “Go to your parishes.” (This was Upstate New York.) “And get little kids to write a letter to God.” ...And I’ve acquired hundreds!.... Don’t panic! I just have a few up here. And, obviously since I’ve had such selectivity, I picked my favorites.

Father and I, we studied Theology for years, the greatest minds, intellects, in Christendom for two thousand years. We had the creme de la creme in Theology. For six years, we studied that. But, now and then, a kid will crystallize a theological concept in a very wonderful way, like a little branch that is really tight with the vine. Anyhow, here they are, and some of them are falling apart. They are so old. So, some of them, I put on index cards. They were collapsing, like Dead Sea Scrolls. A few of them are from the original book that I found in England, “Children’s Letters to God.” Anyhow, here is a small batch....

This little kid was “Jane.” She was about six.

The kid sounds terrified!

And this is “Jean.” It is handwritten. She was only six, not quite six.

Later, when she came to school as a teenager, “You’re Jean?” ....I backed away from her!

This is “Bert.” This is my kind of letter. This kid was nine. I am sixty-nine. And it is exactly, still, my kind of letter. But he was only a little boy when he said,

Now, this is Theology, weeks of Theology, about God’s omniscience and His ubiquity and His knowing ahead of time and all that, the Theology of prayer. “Susan” writes, summing up Theology, with a puzzle....

This was on an index card because it was so fragmented. “Karen” was eight years old. She lived in my first parish. and then she went to the school years later. But when she was eight, living in Millbrook, she wrote:

“Peter” was nine when he wrote:

...Now, I had that letter in mind when, several years later, I had a certain student in class. Now, I was very lucky as a teacher. I loved my job. I had great kids. I really was blessed. But, one semester, I had a kid who sat through the entire first semester Religion class, (I taught English and Religion.) and he sat there like this (arms folded and face expressionless) for a whole semester, from September until Christmas, like this.... hated me, hated religion, hated the world. I found out later that he had a fight with this girl that he liked over the summer vacation when he was a junior. Now, he is a senior and he is miserable. So, over the Christmas vacation, at the end of that first semester, I remembered Peter’s prayer about summer camp. And I prayed every day, “Please, God, this kid’s daddy works at IBM. Have the boss transfer him to another part of the planet.“ When I got back in January, the kid was gone.

“Jonathan”...

Very human prayer....

This girl’s name was “Sherry.”

Index card, because it was so fragmented, tattered.... “Roger” was nine and a half, and Roger later became a writer. He is a writer on the East Coast.

Now, “Timmy” is in his early thirties, but he was just a little kid in Catholic grammar school in Millbrook, Upstate New York....

This is what you should think of when it is announced that there is a second collection, which there always is. “Chris” was just a little kid, eight and a half, I think when he wrote:

Index card... This really is a tiny piece. I have kept the pieces but I put it on an index card. “Sandy,” seven and a half... Sandy is still angry, but in a good way. He is angry about injustice and stuff. Even a little kid, seven and a half, Sandy wrote:

“Ward” wrote:

Hang on. We are nearing the end.... “Missy”... Now Missy was eight. She was eight when she wrote this thing. And when she came to the high school, as a senior later, she was my secretary. Some of the staff got secretaries, and she became my secretary. She was a business major. She was wonderful.... wonderful! But when she was eight, and I showed her this, she wrote:

And she spelled “sincerely” correctly!

“Laura,” age seven....

Now, this is the great mystery of faith. In dark days, you and I just cling, by dogged faith, to Christ, the Cross, the Resurrection. Pain isn’t wasted. We will get through. There is a God. But, “Sam” didn’t know that, at the age of seven, and he presents the central mystery of faith for those of us who cling to belief. Sammy wrote:

Now, “Herbie” was about seven and a half when he wrote this.... Beacon, New York. When he was a senior in high school, years later, he was my head of technical in drama club. And Herbie got the lights going and the furniture and the sets and the props. He was great! But, as a little kid, and even as a seventeen-year-old, Herbie was very succinct. And when he was a child, he wrote:

And this kid drew a picture of this clench! His name was “Neal.”

“Jimmy” wrote,

It is a long letter, but that is the gist....

“Nancy” (She is now the mother of college kids.) when she was eight, wrote this:

Now this was a big, big piece of paper. This little kid “Mark” was eight. Big piece of paper. Crayons. At the top of the paper there was a picture of a smiling face, a kind of typical conventional picture of the anthropomorphization of God, the Father. You know, with the beard, but a big smile... a beard and a halo and a big smile. And an arrow at the bottom of the page leading up to the smiling God. And this kid, Mark, wrote:

This is my favorite. I’ll read it as it is spelled. For some reason, “Stacey McKeon.” I say here name with honor, Stacey, wherever you are. It’s my favorite!

“You have gave me a heart and a brain to love and to learn.” That is all of theology!

“Doreen” was seven when she wrote this. It is not that familiar a name. So, later when she came to Lourdes High School where I was a teacher, when she was a teenager, and she said she was Doreen and from Beacon, New York, I did back away from her because I did remember her letter.

I hope I haven’t read this yet.... “Mark”

This is another prayer you and I identify with, some of us anyhow.

And these are the last two. “Maurice” was from England. His parents were from England. Then he moved to Upstate New York.

And the last... is a letter form “Amy” that every Catholic who goes to Mass every Sunday, would completely agree with. Amy’s sentiment: