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Meeting the Sandy Hook tragedy with the spirit of Christmas

A Christian Science perspective: In the aftermath of the Sandy Hook shootings, God's angels are present to comfort, guide, and heal.

  • By Jeanne Kirkpatrick

After the tragedy in Newtown, Conn., my question in prayer was, how can we know there is comfort and healing for the families whose lives will not be the same? What should be a happy season of family time has been struck with loss, and some families will now have a vacant place in their home.

The answer came: Turn to the spirit of Christmas.

For me that meant, as hearts were spoken to so many centuries ago, hearts will be led, comforted, and healed today. As God’s thoughts spoke to Mary and Joseph to reveal, guide, and protect, so will they speak to hearts and minds deep in grief and sorrow.  They will speak to the young hearts and minds to replace the violent pictures. They will speak to a nation wanting to find answers and resolution.

I have learned that God’s thoughts are the angels that appear to us when we are most in need. As they revealed to Mary the coming birth of her son, guided Joseph to know that this child fulfilled a special purpose, and protected the young family from Herod’s wrath by leading them to Egypt, we will come to know this same presence as we turn to God's angels in our most difficult moments as well as in our good moments. These angel messages from God, divine Love, show young hearts that evil is not natural or all-powerful. As these angels are embraced by them, and by families and the world, all will come to know that love is more powerful than violence.

These angel thoughts, speaking to individual hearts, will lead a nation to reform, to regeneration, and will give to human weakness the strength of divine Spirit to resist violence in any form, whether it be in word, thought, or deed.

The progress may seem too slow for us, but it will be sure. God’s angel thoughts will lead us to love and care for one another and make this precious promise come to life for every one of us: “Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?... If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me” (Psalms 139:7, 9, 10).

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