Saint Log

I've jokingly said for some time that Log will be a priest; he has a theological awareness beyond his years.  His questions betray deep ecclesiastical thoughts:  How do we know which religion is right (a question brought about as a result of his exposure to Muslim students in his German Vorschule)?; What if I forget to tell God about a mistake I made when I pray?  Will He still forgive me?  Log takes great comfort in his faith, and his faith is great.  

Perhaps it was because we celebrated Saint Patrick's day this week or that Sister C. and Sacred Heart of Jesus School planted deeply seeded Catholic roots or that Saint's days are observed in the Rheinland, but something got little man thinking about saints and how one becomes one.

Yesterday as I sat at our table blowing out eggs for a craft at Littlest's school, I had the following conversation with Log:

Mama, how do you become a saint?

I explained martyrdom in broad terms and alluded to establishing a person's venerability, beatification and the canonization process.  Log caught the word 'martyred' and mistook it for 'murdered' (not far off base) and asked:

Did someone want to kill Santa Claus?  He's a saint, right?  

I went a step further and explained that not all saints were martyred citing Saint Martin, a relatable example due to the recentness of his namesake day, and mentioned that Mother Teresa has been beatified and is in the process of being canonized without being martyred.  Log seemed momentarily satisfied with my response but after a brief repose asked:

What about the Saints who go marching in?  How can I be in that number?

At this point, Bop broke out into song and I couldn't maintain bearing long enough to provide an immediate and sensible answer.  Once Bop had finished the hymn's chorus with her own little flourish, I explained that by inviting Jesus to live in his heart and endeavoring to keep God's commandments that he would indeed be in that number.  

I still want to be a saint and do good things for people.

Later that evening, Log tried on sainthood for size by drawing a picture, setting his namesake day, and signing it "Saint Log."  Maybe I should mention humility as a requisite for veneration.

And calling to him a child, He put him in the midst of them and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven."

(Matthew 18:2-4 ESV)