Was it his Guardian Angel? Was it his Guardian Angel?

Anthony and Mary Silva1 are married in São Paulo. They have two sons, John aged eight, and Paul aged four. After having spent six months without work, Anthony finally managed to get a job as a driver with a private bus company. His occupation was very simple: bringing people to and fro from work every day. Each passenger paid one Brazilian real 2. Of this real more that 99 cents went to the owner of the bus company, Anthony gaining 1/4 of a cent for every passenger he carried! He was obliged to rise at 4:00 a.m. every day, his rounds began at 4:30 a.m., he worked throughout the entire day and finally arrived home at about 11:00 p.m. Each day brought an income of ten "eras".

As you can well imagine there were no shopping sprees in the life of Anthony and Mary. Each and every cent had to be counted as they replenished their stocks for the coming week. In July of this year, as the family walked into the supermarket, Paul announced his desire to have a bottle of pop, but he insisted that it must be a small bottle. Now there are small bottles, medium bottles and big bottles, and as we all know it is most economical to buy the big bottles. For this reason Anthony insisted that it must be a large bottle. Young boys, after all, must not only learn to respect their parent's budget, but must also learn to share with others. But little Paul insisted, it must be a small bottle. Mary, the young mother, took Paul's side, telling her husband that he was always so good to Paul, and that he shouldn't upset him now. Without further ado or consultation Mary threw a packet of 3 bottles of pop into the trolley.

On arriving home Paul wanted to drink his pop immediately. Not only did he insist on this, but he also desired to open the bottle for himself. His mother broke the seal and then let Paul finish the job. Paul then went off to another room to enjoy his drink, but within seconds he was heard shouting with glee: "we've won a jeep". He had spotted the picture of a jeep on the inside of the cap of the bottle, and came to the quick conclusion that the family had won a new jeep.

Anthony did not delay, he immediately rang Antártica and inquired. He was informed that they were not the only ones in the race. There would be a draw to decide who would win the five jeeps on offer. On August the 4th Mary rang again. Was it possible that their name had come out of the hat? They were not in first place, nor in second, but yes, in third place came the Silva family. The jeep was theirs, but not for long! Within days Anthony sold it and bought himself a minibus. Now he could work for himself. Now he could rise at a reasonable hour, gain a reasonable wage, and return home relatively early. In fact if he continued at the old rhythm he would earn 400 eras per day. But as there are more important things in life than money, Anthony will be spending more time with his wife and children.

We could now ask ourselves a question: why did little Paul insist so much on having a small bottle of pop? Was it an exaggerated expression of self-affirmation? Was it mere selfishness? Or is it possible that he was being guided by some person who knew that by buying that bottle of pop the financial difficulties of the family would be resolved? Jesus teaches us that every child has a holy Angel (cf. Mt 18,10). The task of this Angel is to protect and guide the child. He helps the child to make those decisions which redound to its well-being. However we must also add that the Angel does not limit his interest to the good of the child, but also works for the happiness of the entire family. It is most reasonable to presuppose that young Paul was being moved interiorly by his Guardian Angel. The Angel, who always beholds the face of the Father in heaven, often knows what is unknown to us, what we cannot possible know in virtue of our human efforts. For this reason one is justified in affirming that it was Paul's Guardian Angel who rescued the family from their financial problems.

What we have said might lead to the impression that it is only children who enjoy and, are in need of, the protection of the Holy Angels. The Church however teaches us that every baptized person enjoys the protection of a Guardian Angel: "Beside each believer stands an Angel as protector and shepherd leading him to life"³.

This doctrine harmonizes perfectly with the words of Jesus. Before affirming that the Angels protect little children, He stated that we must all become like little children:

And calling to him a child, He put him in the midst of them, and said, "Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest is the kingdom of heaven" Mt 18,2-4

Why is it that we Christians often shy away from devotion to our Guardian Angels? Why does this devotion not find a place in our spiritual lives? It seems that we are too fixed on being "mature Christians", we are determined to present ourselves as "adults in the faith". We don't need such "childish" devotions! But are they childish? Maybe in the heel of the hunt they are a sign of true Christian adulthood. The mature Christian is the one who recognizes his position before God, seeing him or herself as a son or daughter of the Father. He longs to become like a little child and rest tranquil in the arms of God the Father. He desires nothing else than to look into the eyes of his Heavenly Father and say:

I trust You, I love You, I desire to fulfill Your Will in all things. Your Will is my delight, Your Ways are better than my ways. You are perfectly Wise and all Loving, so I want to be Your child.

Such a Christian has no difficulties in accepting devotion to the Guardian Angel. In other words if we have "become like little children" we will love our Guardian Angels.

Who is it that teaches us the way of "spiritual childhood"? Undoubtedly the Saint who has expressed this doctrine most eloquently is St. Teresa of the Child Jesus. She desired that God treat her like a little toy. She offered herself without reserve to His Goodness. She desired to become that perfect child who had unlimited confidence in her Father. If He took pleasure in her and filled her soul with consolations, she accepted it; if He "abandoned" her in the corner, leaving her without spiritual delights, she knew that this too came from His Goodness and could only lead to her happiness. In everything she confided in her Heavenly "DAD". In everything she lived Gospel "Child-Likeness".

The Church has placed her feast on October 1st. If we could only celebrate it in real earnest, if we could but enter into the spirit of being "Children of God", we would undoubtedly be ready for the feast of October 2nd, that of the "Guardian Angels". It is they who want to lead us to the Father, but we must allow ourselves to be lead. God Himself has taught us how to treat our Guardian Angel:

Behold, I send an Angel before you, to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place which I have prepared. Give heed to him and hearken to his voice, do not rebel against him, for he will not pardon your transgression; for my name is in him. Ex 23,20-22 ⁴

God's inspirations come to us through our Guardian Angel. Let us invoke this Holy Angel on rising in the morning and before going to bed at night. Let us try to be more conscious of him throughout the day, and he will guard and guide us in this life, and 'bring us to the place that God has prepared for us'.

Prayer to ones Guardian Angel:
O Angel of God, my guardian dear,
To whom God's love commits me here,
Ever this day (or night) be at my side,
To light and guard, to rule and guide. Amen.

God our Father, You promised Your Kingdom, to the little ones and the humble of heart.
Give us grace to walk confidently in the way of Saint Teresa of the Child Jesus,
so that, helped by her prayers, we may see your eternal glory. We ask this through Christ Our Lord. Amen.⁵

¹The story that follows is true but the names have been altered. It is not a story from the distant past, but from the year 1999.