Article by Monsignor Aguer
The human mystery of childhood.
I point out an event that amazes me. The eyes of children—regardless of their race of origin—seem all identical, showing their color widely open: black, brown, blue. This, it seems to me, is a sign of the mystery of childhood; that world inaccessible to adults, even to parents themselves. Every man was a child; for how long? Argentine legislation calls a child a human being up to 18 years old. The theologians affirm that the Son of God, equal to the Father, of the same essence—homoúsios tô Patrí, reads the Nicene Creed—became man virginally in the womb of Mary; but they do not usually recognize that this affirmation, which is a truth of faith, implies taking for granted that he was a child. In the Gospels of Matthew and Luke there are numerous indications: Jesus was born and wrapped in swaddling clothes; he remained subject to Mary and Joseph. He was believed to be the son of Joseph, from whom he learned to be a craftsman.
One of the most aberrant facts, which abound in contemporary chronicles, is the abuse of children, which goes as far as rape, both of boys and girls. The Church recognizes and punishes this when it occurs, perpetrated by priests. “Let the children come to me,” Jesus proclaimed: the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to them and to those who are like them; here is a central point of Christian spirituality. The Child Jesus is a most beautiful figure, in which the Christian message is encapsulated. Christianity is distinguished by this in all cultural orders. Therefore, it is necessary that this fact of the inviolability of children be recognized in the life of peoples. Fatherhood and motherhood, in the Christian order, are a reflection of the fatherhood of the Creator God; it is the mystery of life itself, respected in many aspects in the animal realm.
The proper prayer of Christianity is the Our Father. Men should recognize themselves as brothers, all children of the same Father. The grace of Baptism makes us children of God; from there springs Christian fraternity, which can extend beyond the limits of the profession of faith. For this reason, the Church preaches peace and points to war as an evil. It is true that human limitations justify war when it is unavoidable, and tends toward the restoration of justice. There exists in history the testimony of holy war, as in the Bible it appears in the life of the People of God and thus it has been verified in Christian eras: “si vis pacem, para bellum” configures human reality; evil can be assumed for the sake of good. –
+ Héctor Aguer
Emeritus Archbishop of La Plata.
Buenos Aires, Tuesday, April 7, 2026.
Octave of Easter. –