The Blessed Lady said, "Be in constant touch with the little children, and lead them to God. Do not sin against them, for their angels are always watching over them and presenting their requests to the Eternal Father."
Part 3 Message of the Blessed Virgin Mary to Christiana at Aokpe Nigeria - 1st Jan 1994
But Jesus called them unto him, and said, suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you, whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein (Mt. 19:14). Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, that in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven (Mt. 18:10). But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it was better for him that a millstone was hanged about his neck, and that he was drowned in the depth of the sea (Mt. 18:6).
These very words of our Lord Jesus above are paraphrased by our heavenly mother in this apparition. She underscores the fact that we should not sin against the little children. The term “Little children” could have implications for theologians. Questions may arise like who is a child? What is it to be childlike? And is childlikeness same as childishness?
In the words of our Savior and that of our Lady, we are dealing here with age group. Today, we see the rampage of child abuse all over the place. Child abuse is in four-fold: physical and emotional ill-treatment, sexual abuse, neglect and exploitation. Knowing how critical this is to the Kingdom of God, the adversary has attacked the Church severally in this direction to which our Lord, two thousand years ago, and our heavenly Mother three decades ago at Aokpe have called us to be vigilant. One of the five sacrileges against the Immaculate Heart of Mary as revealed to Lucia by Our Lord in 1930 is the sin of perverting the hearts of the children. Heaven takes cognizance of little children.
Little wonder the Church has dedicated one of the four pontifical societies to holy childhood. It is not just enough not to abuse children but it is imperative to show them the way to God. O Mary our holy mother, teach us to conquer every sin… and the prize of life to win. Amen