March 25, 2011

My Journey to God

Sophia’s Insights on Cleaning

On Friday night, Sophia’s father told her that it was time for her bath.
“But I don’t see any dirt on me,” Sophia argued.
“There’s dirt you can’t see. Now go wash up,” her father answered.
The next day, on Saturday, her mother told Sophia to clean her room.
“But I just cleaned it last week! Why do I have to clean it again?” she whined.
“Dirt builds up, and you have to clean regularly,” her mother told her. “There is an old saying, ‘Cleanliness is next to godliness.’
“And,” her mother continued, “we have company coming over so I want the house to look spotless for our guests.”
That afternoon, Sophia told her parents she wanted to be at church by 4 p.m.
“Why?” they asked her. “Mass doesn’t start until 5:30 p.m.”
“Well,” Sophia said, with a serious look on her face, “I’ve been thinking about what you said about cleaning. Yesterday, you told me there’s dirt on us we can’t see. Today, you told me dirt builds up over time so we have to clean regularly, and you want the house spotless for our guests.
“So wouldn’t our souls be the same way?” she asked. “I mean, sin builds up over time like dirt, right? Even if we can’t see it? And shouldn’t we be super clean for when we receive Jesus, the most important guest ever?”
And thus began the family’s practice of going to the sacrament of reconciliation once a month before Saturday evening Mass.
Cleanliness is, after all, next to godliness!

By Natalie Hoefer

(Natalie Hoefer is a member of St. Monica Parish in Indianapolis.) †

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