God as I imagine Him

God “wants me”. “He calls us and desires us all”. He is someone who “keeps promises”. These are just a few phrases taken from the essays written by a group of girls that we partially publish here. Everything stems from a question we asked ourselves: what do girls think of God? How do they imagine him? What would they ask him? Anyone who deals with children, especially between the ages of 8 and 9, knows that, at this particular moment in their lives, they have a natural predisposition to the Transcendent. A clear, curious openness that goes straight to the point. They are full of questions about God, about what comes after death, about the ultimate mysteries of existence. Often with a depth that leaves us amazed. So, we proposed to a young teacher, Gabriella Guarnieri, from the Gianelli Institute in Rome, to assign her students an essay that would allow the girls to talk about God. The proposed title was this: “What do you know about God, how do you imagine Him, what would you like to know about his heart, his desires for your life” and “if and how do you feel known by him”. The excerpts we publish, thanking teacher Gabriella and all the girls, were written by eight students of the fourth grade. Age, nine years old.

by ELISA CALESSI

Aria — My Fantastic Guardian

My fantastic guardian. I am a great friend of God, but I don’t know him so well, I also believe that when God created the world, he was not alone. Surely, He needed a hand, and His great friend created with her own hands: her name is Mother Nature, her help was to strengthen the plants and flowers. I am not like the Sumerians who believed He was physically strong, with muscles and that he was a great man. No way! I believe He is wise, simple, with His words that seem to come out of a poet’s mouth and that he is the one who has suffered the most, so in this way he has learned all the things he did not know and that we humans still do not know. I believe he is strong, not in physique, but inside, because some things are found inside, not outside. Then he found a wonderful mother, namely Mary. Then I believe that one should not look at someone’s ugliness, but their behavior.

Jesus knows me and is paying a lot of attention to me because I am having personal problems, but my parents say it happens in the growth of a child.

Marta — He always has a smile on his face

I believe in God and sometimes I feel that his voice calls me, and when he calls me, I am happy because it means that God needs me or he wants me. I always imagine God with a smile on his face and with a huge heart full of joy and love. Sometimes I wonder, “But God, how did you create the whole world in the beginning?” I feel very loved by God, also because otherwise, he wouldn’t have called me.

Emma — He is a reliable person

God is a reliable person, who when you stumble, will lift you up and help you keep walking. God is a sinless person, happy to be with you. I would like to know many things about His heart, especially when something makes him sad. If I knew, I would say not to say or do anything to anyone that makes him sad. Or I would like to know where heaven is so I could run there, where I could be with my father God who would embrace me. I know perfectly well that I am known by God because God keeps His arms open to everyone, it is us who refuse His embrace.

Evita — He is my secret diary

About God, I know that He is a very kind and polite man, a man who would do everything for us. I imagine God as good, sweet, and always kind to everyone, I imagine Him big and strong and full of love. And I would like to know many things, for example, His love, His joys, His sorrows, and His happiness. I always ask God if one day he could make himself known to me and my parents. I want to know everything about God, and I hope that God would want to know everything about me, just as I want to know everything about Him. I describe Jesus like this: tall, slim, kind, brown eyes, hair a little brown, a little reddish. God is everything to me, God is my secret diary. He is my second dad, God is also a lot of light to me.

Maya — He doesn’t like sacrifices

God is Father and doesn’t like sacrifices because he only wants us to be well and to remain faithful to Him every day, despite the temptations of the devil. God is unique and for me, He is also the light of life and peace. He is wise and knowledgeable. I would like to know how much it saddens Him in His heart when we tell lies, play tricks, steal, or make war. I would like to know what will happen to me in the future and if I will see all my family again in Heaven. With God, I feel as if I am in a light that waits for me with open arms and says to me, “Welcome to Heaven, I have been waiting for you”.

Bianca — He wants us to be free

I know that God is all-powerful, e hwants us to have the freedom to choose. God is generous, full of goodness, and not for a second will he listen to evil. I would like to know a little bit of everything about his heart: what makes him angry, what makes him cry tears of joy. In my opinion, He wants what is good for me and all positive things, and the same for others. I feel known by God, to me it’s as if he has known me forever because he is the God of heaven and earth.

Silvia — I would like to know what He thinks of us

God is Father to the whole world, even to non-believers, He created the earth in seven days. I would like to know what he thinks of us and how many other people and things he will put on the earth. I know that he loves us and he went to the cross for our salvation.

In my opinion, God calls us and desires us all. In the morning, when I pray, I offer him both the good actions and the ugliest ones, so he can transform them into joy for all the sick people and for my family. I believe that the guardian angel he has given us is always with us, despite the temptation of the devil. Jesus has saved us and promised that those who believe in him during life will go to Heaven and those who have committed many sins will go to Hell, but if he confesses and prays to God then he will go to heaven.

Alicia — He has a heart of gold

My special friends: Jesus, God, and Mary. God has a heart of gold, and I know he is protecting me from up there, and I would like to know his heart to see how much love he has in it, but I know he has a lot. I feel protected by Jesus; he is a friend who will never abandon anyone. He keeps his promises. Jesus, God, and Mary are very special to me; they always protect me, forever and ever.