The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1922-11-18
As Other Children.

All that we know of the life of
Christ at this period is summed up in.
the words of Saint Luke, THE Child
grew. and waxed strong in the fulness
of wisdom, and the grace of God was
upon Him." We may conclude how
ever, that, although God as much as
His father, to all outward appearance
there was nothing to distinguish Him
from the other children among whom
He lived, and that He learned from
Mary and Joseph the simple lessons
prescribed by the Law
At II, Jesus found Himself some
what free from the family govern
ment, and, having been admitted to
the synagogue, He became a son of
the law and was subject to it's pre-
scriptions. A law of the greatest i'm
portance was the yearly visit to Jeru-
salem at the time of the Pasch.
Jesus went to Jerusalem with His
parents, and after soiourn of sew
eral days, Mary and Joseph started
the return journey. At the end of the
day they missed the Child and sought
tions. Unable to find Him, they re-
turned to Jerusalem and for the space
of two days they searched for Him
On the third day they discovered Him
seated in the temple, in the midst of
the doctors, hearing them and asking
them questions" and all that heard
Him "were astonished at His wisdom
=
Him were the doctors of the law, and
Mary might see there Simeon, who
foretold her sufferings, and Nicodemus,
who would come to Jesus afterwards,
filled with the grace necessary for his
enlightenment And Mary and Joseph
wondered, for He overawed the doc
tors by His questions and answers.
As awed as Mary might have been,
she did not forget the pain which she
suffered as a result of the loss of the
Child, and she addressed Him saying,
"Son, why hast Thou done so to US?
Thy father and I have sought Thee
sorrowing." Although Jesus knew
that His loss caused His mother great
sorrow, He did not try to excuse Him
self, because He wished to give us a
lesson that the things of God are
above every consideration, and that
the ties of blood, family interests, the
dearest things that man holds ON
earth, must be set aside when they
come into conflict with the interests
OF God s4s4 H. s. ~
An Example for Youth to Follow.
Nothing else is recorded of the life
of Christ. from the finding in the
temple until the beginning of His pub
lie life, except that He went down
to Nazareth with His parents, there
He was subject to them, and He in
creased in wisdom, in age, and in
grace before God and man." There
is here an example which every Chris
tian youth could well initiate. Too
often is the spirit of reverence and
respect absent from the minds of our
youth, and the child soon frees him
self from the parental authority be-
cause ne considers his parents unpro-
gressive. No such youth can rightly
call himself follower of the Child
Christ, who, though He knew all
things, was subject to Mary and Jo-
seph in the lowly home of Nazareth
There is no time in our lives when we
may not turn to this Great Exemplar
for there are certain obligations be-
fitting every period of our lives.
As it was the custom for the Jew
ish children to learn some trade or
art, no matter what might be the sta
ton of the parents, and since Jesus,
was a member of poor family, we
may conclude that He learned car
pentry under the tutelage of Saint
Joseph, and so helped to support Him.
self and His mother.
BY eating and drinking, living and
working with His relations, "He hal
lowed the trials of our daily life, which
Heaven mingles with the joys of home
and family, and which makes for the
probation and the salvation of so
many souls"