“When you speak or preach, always insist on frequent communion and devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary.”

The Lord sends us special people to handle special needs at crucial times in the history of our Church and our world. From the time of Jesus, the little ones - the children - have been dear to the heart of the Father.

We recall the words of Jesus in Scripture, “Let the little ones come unto me, and do not hinder them. It is to such as these that the Kingdom of God belongs.” (Mk 10:15)

Again, he spoke of the children as being important in God’s Plan. “For what you have hidden from the learned and the clever, you have revealed to the merest children.” (Mt 11:25)

Children have always been uppermost in the mind of the Father, as they have been helpless and in need of protection. There have been orphans and street urchins from the beginning of time. Over the centuries, the Lord has provided for these little ones, by sending men and women to take care of them.

An epidemic of exploitation of children began at the end of the 18th century, with the dawn of the Industrial Revolution. Inventions, such as machines for spinning thread, the power loom, and the steam engine, created a new way of manufacturing goods. It also created a need for massive cheap labor. Families were lured off the farms and brought into the cities to work in factories, under the deception of living a better life.