One Sunday morning, eight young men decided to go on an outing together. They planned to spend their day off drinking wine, playing card games, and pursuing other worldly pleasures. As they chatted and laughed merrily, the sudden ringing of church bells pierced the air. For one of the young men, it stamped his mother’s voice from home clearly into his mind. He halted and explained to his comrades that he wanted to turn back and go to church. But instead of understanding, they responded with loud laughter and ridicule. “Stephan has suddenly become a saint,” they mocked. “We should baptize him! And now, into the water he must go!”
Stephan remained calm and serious: “I know you are strong enough to throw me into the water. But listen to me before you do that. My home is far away from here, and you don’t know that I have a loving, frail mother who may never leave her bed again. I am her youngest child, and since my father didn’t have enough money to support me, a friend agreed to take care of me.
It was hard for my mother to let me go. On the day I left, she called me into her room. She laid her hands on my head and prayed for me. Then she looked at me earnestly and said: ‘My dear child, you do not know and will never understand what a mother feels when she says her final goodbye to her child. I know we will never see each other again on this earth. It would be too much to ask for you to embark on the long trip back home before completing your studies. By the time you’re finished, I won’t be here anymore since my days are numbered. Where you’re going, you will have neither father nor mother to guide and admonish you. But I will not stop praying for you. Every Sunday, when you hear church bells ringing, remember that I am thinking of you. Wherever you are, think of your dying mother when those bells toll. I love you like no one else can, and I pray for you with tears. Now give me a kiss and then farewell!’”
Stephan continued: “I may not see my sweet mother here anymore, but I hope to meet her in heaven with God’s help. How could I ever forget her? I have decided to choose my mother’s God as my God.”
After Stephan finished, his comrades were moved to tears. They made way for him as he turned and headed over to the church. His determination had touched their hearts as well. They all abandoned their original plans and accompanied him to church. What they heard there left a deep impression on them.
Stephan became a radiant child of God and, then later, a faithful worker in the Lord’s vineyard. He never regretted following his mother’s advice.
J. Klenert
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