Amy was a baby girl with Down syndrome who attended Mass at a Catholic church in Milford, Ohio. One of the sweetest youngsters you could want to know. Whenever Mass ended, here comes Amy running to see me, always with a big smile followed by a big hug.
Amy always wanted to see the flowers on the altar so I started taking her up on the altar and we would sit down near the flowers. She was allowed to pick “just one.” She was so proud – that one was like a dozen to her. Concern from others over this practice caused me to ask, “Who would want to stop a Downy Baby from picking just one altar flower? A bishop? A priest? A deacon? A church elder? Someone else?
One day, years later, I got an answer. Read the article in Arkansas Catholic from Aug. 26, 2017, on page 8 involving a sad story regarding the elimination of Down syndrome in Iceland. People of Iceland are stopping the Amys of the world every day. Can we figure out why? Who will pick those altar flowers now?
Now envision Iceland’s dead approaching the heavenly gates, guarded by thousands of Downy babies. If we, who are considered normal, make final judgment, those folks will never pass into heaven. However, if you truly understand the Downy Mindset, all are going to be allowed to pass.
David Hayes writes from Springdale.
