On July 6, 1902 all of Italy was horrified by the rape and murder of a little girl, Maria Goretti. She died defending her innocence and pleading to God for mercy. The crime was especially appalling to an agrarian society that hardly spoke of sexuality and regarded children as pre-sexual innocents. Less than fifty years later Pope Pius XII canonized the child, naming her the patroness of teenage girls.
Four years ago America was charmed by the movie, Little Miss Sunshine. It was about a little girl who wants with all her heart to compete in a talent show/beauty contest for children. Not many of us are familiar with the bizarre world of beauty contests, much less that subculture aimed at children. We had to laugh at the implausibility of a child reenacting a striptease before the contest judges – until we discovered that YouTube has dozens of such programs.
How long will they be unable to attain
innocence in Israel?
When they sow the wind,
they shall reap the whirlwind!
A society that sexualizes every human interaction will consume its own children, and think it perfectly normal.
Since 1902 thousands of girls around the world have been sacrificed to our idolatry of sex. Thailand is infamous for its sex tourism. It sex industry imports children from China and draws customers from the entire world.
Saint Maria Goretti, still pleading for your virginity, pray for us.
Oh, my! I hadn't thought of Maria Goretti today. How right you are. As a mother, I can't tell you how I ache for children today. Everywhere they are bombarded with sexuality. A term I've heard is how children are growing up in a "toxic culture" today. As a mother and grandmother, I too plead for original innocence of children.
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