THE INFANT JESUS OF ARACOELI

A little Italian boy named Todo lived in the village of Santo Antonio dell Alliermonte, which was several miles from Rome. Todo was a good little boy; gentle and pious and most unselfish. He lived with his grandmother; (Nonna, in Italian). Many a time he would give up his playtime to run messages for his grandmother, gather sticks from the forest for the fire or run errands for the neighbours, to earn a few pennies for his dear Nonna. Todo always went to daily Mass before he went to school, and he always said some special prayers in the chapel of the Virgin Mary.

One winter, when he was 9 years old, Todo became very ill; he was shivering with cold and at the same time he was very hot! He could hardly breathe and a terrible cough gave him no rest. The doctor gave Todo some medicine and his grandmother did all she could to help him get well. But on Christmas Eve, the doctor told Todo's grandmother that the boy could not last many days longer. The old woman cried and begged the Child Jesus to cure her grandson but as the hours passed there was no change for the better.

Now Todo heard the doctor tell his Nonna the sad news about him not having long to live. So the boy lay in bed thinking; he was very sad, he loved his grandmother dearly and wanted to help her. He had planned to work very hard for her when he grew up and decided that when he grew rich, he would give his grandmother a beautiful house, nice clothes and let her rest all the time and amuse herself while he worked for her.

When the doctor left, Todo decided to speak. "Nonna," he called gently, "why are you crying? Is it true that I am so ill?"

"Oh Jesus! Mary!" Grandmother cried, with tears running down her cheeks, "The doctor says you are indeed sick, very sick, my Todo!"

"Nonna," he said after a long fit of coughing, "will not the good Jesus hear our prayers, and let me get well? Did you not tell me about Il Santo Bambino (Holy Baby) dell Aracoeli?"

"Il Santo Bambino dell Aracoeli!" cried grandmother. "Yes, the statue of the Infant Jesus in the Basilica of St. Mary Major, in Rome. Many favours have been obtained by this Infant Jesus when people have prayed to Him at this holy shrine. And especially the sick, and poor children, have their prayers answered there. Every year during the Christmas Season, Il Santo Bambino is honoured by processions and devotions, and candles are burned in His honour. Little children sing and speak His praises during the Christmas Season before the Santo Bambino. And for miles around the city of Rome, the people in the villages also have a great devotion to the Il Santo Bambino. During the Christmas Season, they flock to Rome to obtain graces and blessings from the Child Jesus. Ah truly, if we could only go to Rome," Grandmother sighed, "but alas, we are not able to."

"Perhaps if we prayed, he would come to us," said little Todo, his eyes full of tears. "Dear Nonna, He loves us, so we will pray to Him with all our hearts, and who knows?"

The old woman cried bitterly; little Todo was her all! Her only daughter, when dying, had left the little boy to her. Now she was going to lose him; and the thought of being lonely pierced her heart like a sharp sword. Must she see her little grandson carried out to the cemetery, and then return to an empty cottage to live by herself for the rest of her life? Is this really what God wanted? These and other thoughts raced through her mind.

But it was Christmas Eve and grandmother knew that she must leave soon to go to Confession, to prepare for the great Feast of Christmas. So drying her eyes, she made Todo comfortable, and promised to hurry back from church. Then she stepped out into the cold night air.

As soon as she was gone, Todo sat up in bed and breathed a prayer, then he got out of bed. With a great deal of coughing and gasping for breath, he dressed himself. He placed a bundle of clothes under the covers so that his Nonna would not notice that he was missing. Wrapping a sheepskin around him, he walked out into the cold night air. The ground was white with snow and the cold air brought on a terrible fit of coughing — nearly costing him his life!

Todo hesitated to go at first, but down in the village he saw the lights of the church shining through the coloured windows, and he remembered that in the church there was a picture of Jesus blessing little children. And he remembered his poor Nonna who would be all alone if he died … then he stepped out into the snow, he wanted to get well so that he could take care of his dear grandmother.

It was very difficult walking along on the hard slippery snow. The north wind was blowing against him and made him cough at almost every step he took! "Oh Jesus," cried little Todo, "You were a poor child also. Please bring me safely back to Nonna, my dear Jesus I beg of You."

Todo had to sit down by the wayside, until a fit of coughing had left him. But after two or three hours of walking, he found that his strength was beginning to fail him, and when at last he came in sight of the great city of Rome, he sank down onto the snow and cried, "Ah, Jesus! Must I die and leave Nonna all alone? Ah, Jesus! Ah, Mary! … By the love with which you loved each other, help poor Todo!"

He crawled on his hands and knees for a little while, and at last fell forward on his face, unable to go on. His breath seemed to fail him and his eyes closed … he felt that he was dying! "Thy will be done," he tried to say, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." Suddenly the boy felt gentle arms raising him up and a sweet perfume revived the fainting boy. He was able to open his eyes and look at who was carrying him. "Ah, dear Jesus," he sighed, "You have heard my prayer. You have sent an angel to help me. Dear Angel I thank you with all my heart!"

Swiftly the angel passed through the streets of Rome. The bells were ringing for midnight Mass, lights shone through the windows of every church and people were hurrying to attend Mass. Before long the angel was at the Basilica of St. Mary Major, and there laid the boy at the feet Il Santo Bambino dell Aracoeli.

The statue of the Infant of Aracoeli is life-size and it was carved in Jerusalem at the end of the year 1400 from the wood of an olive tree, grown in Gethsemane. It was carved by a Franciscan monk, but its coloring was completed by the hands of an angel! The jewels which cover this statue were donated by people from around the world in thanksgiving for favours received and as a sign of their love for the Christ Child.

At the foot of the statue, Todo thanked Jesus with all his heart and begged to be made well again, for the sake of his grandmother. Suddenly a miracle; little Todo stood up! He no longer felt the burning fever, he was no longer coughing and he felt very strong. Then the boy knelt and said a fervent prayer of thanksgiving to our dear Lord. The angel then took his hand, led him to a priest and the boy related his miraculous story to the priest. And all the while the angel stood nearby listening to the story as the boy told it!

Todo then attended the midnight Mass and the priest motioned to him to come to the altar rail to receive Holy Communion. At the same time Todo saw Jesus surrounded by angels and his heart almost broke with gratitude and love. After Todo had received Jesus in Holy Communion, he knelt there for many hours talking to Jesus in an ecstasy of love and joy!

When day began to break, Todo thought of his grandmother so he left the church and made his way home. As he neared the village, his grandmother saw him and cried out, "Ah Todo, do you want to kill yourself? And how can you dance when yesterday you were so sick?"

"My Nonna," he cried, "I have been to see Il Santo Bambino, and see I am cured!"

The neighbours flocked around and Todo told them about the holy angel who had carried him in his arms to Rome and laid him at the feet of Il Santo Bambino in the Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome.

It is faith in God that we need. Todo was rewarded because he had great faith. And you will be rewarded too if you continue to have faith in the good God. God is always there listening to our prayers; but the prayers He hears first are always the prayers that come from a humble heart. He also hears the prayers that come from a heart that tries very hard to be good and the prayers that come from a heart that tries very hard not to sin. So, be good and God will reward you!

The End

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