As we approach Christmas, the feast of the childhood of God amongst us, the Church in different ways reminds us of the need to care for the children of the world according to the teaching of Jesus, "It is no part of your heavenly Father's plan that a single one of these little ones shall even come to grief."

It is a great source of grief and pain and shame for us, that so many of these little ones have indeed come to grief because of abuse in the Church throughout the world. Then, too, there are so many cases where these little ones have come to grief at the hands of politicians, police and military in so many countries of the world. Thus at various times the Popes have condemned the scandal of "child soldiers". No matter where the source of child abuse lies, it is always subject to Jesus' condemnation.