The little theologian

Theo loves going to church. This week he started talking about it on Friday.

So this morning, when he asked to go (early; it wasn't time yet), we just went ahead.

We were hanging out in the empty sanctuary, before anything else got started, and he was playing by the altar rail. He knelt on the kneeler, put out his hands, and said, "Body."

"Oh, yes," I said. "The body of Christ, given for you," and I pretended to give him communion. He pretended to eat it with a big smile on his face.

I pointed to the picture of Jesus at the front of the church. "Who is that?" I said.

"Mama," he answered confidently.

I laughed. "No, that's Jesus!"

"Jesus."

We played communion some more. "The blood of Christ, shed for you," I said. "Hey, Theo, do you know who Christ is?"

He pointed to the picture. "Jesus!"

He is actually crazy about communion. We used to take him up for a blessing, but he's started stretching out his "pleading arms" and whining, "pleeeeeeease!" whenever we go up. He doesn't want to wait in line -- he wants to rush the altar. So we've started letting him take it (with the grape juice). It just seems cruel to deny someone with that much desire for it, even though he's so little.

And who knows, maybe he understands it better than we realize!