Jesus Caritas

“Sweet little Jesus boy
They made you be born in a manger
Sweet little holy child’
We didn’t know who you were”

Sweet little Jesus boy,
are you that infant pulled from the rubble of war?
that tiny newborn birthed in a refugee boat seeking hope?
that little child hungry, thirsty, naked, sick amidst the ravages of earthquake, wildfire, and storm?
that innocent baby labeled “stranger”, “terrorist”, living in a tent in borderlands with nowhere to call home?
Sweet little Jesus boy, will you grow to be a prisoner of fear, rejection, condemned to a life of tears?

Sweet little Jesus boy,
have I built a wall to keep you out of my life?
left you in a refugee camp in tears?
closed the door of my heart to your fears?
been blind to your beauty and worth?
Do I recognize God’s eyes in yours,
powerless God come to birth?