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I think one of the most remarkable aspects of Christmas is that we celebrate the birth of a child-not a warrior nor a world ruler, powerful and wealthy, but a tiny newborn baby born into humble circumstances whose first bed was the container for animal food. The words spoken by that child were to change the world in ways still felt by us 21 centuries later. All through the Bible, special attention is given to children. They were revered and considered important. "Suffer the little children" was one of that baby's pronouncements after he grew up and began spreading his gospel.

Yet often, I think that in their zeal to become a recognized and potent force in the world today, some religious and political leaders forget the core of the message. The fact that that baby was born in a barn and not in a magnificent castle and that he was from a poor family should have been the clue that all children are important regardless of their color, caste, creed, ethnicity or life circumstances. A child without hope will grow up to be an adult without hope-one who may find suicide bombing an appropriate way to leave this life. All of the people in prisons, all those plotting elaborate, bloody plans to make the world pay for their lack of hope, were once innocent children.

It's more important than ever to remember all the children as we go into this celebratory season.

One of the first ways to take care of children is to nourish their bodies. We have all seen horrifying photojournalists' depictions of children dying of starvation in many places across the world. We've seen horrifying scenes of adults and children dying in the mass slaughter of genocide. We should raise our voices in a mighty chorus of protest against those carrying out this modern-day slaughter of innocents. Unfortunately, unless the country is a rich oil producing site, the slaughter seems to just make us shake our heads and sigh before we return to our daily tasks.

Even though the immediate bloody actions of war are more dramatic, I believe that the slow process of malnourishment of mind and body can be even more devastating. For some the suffering of children abroad is a sad fact but one which can be largely ignored even though the impact of their anger is like a long-burning fuse. And, for others, even the suffering of children living among us can also be overlooked in one of the wealthiest countries on earth. We assume that the government is taking care of them, but many fall through the cracks.

According to the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC), the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that in 2006, "35.5 million people in America lived in households considered to be food insecure." Of those millions, 12.6 million are children. That's 17.2 percent of all children in America. This is not an improvement over previous years. The number of households in America at risk increased to 11.1 percent in 2006 up from 10.8 percent in 2005. Add to that the fact that according to USDA, hunger in American households in 2005 had already risen by 43 percent over the past five years.

My prayer for this Christmas season is that important and powerful people take notice of these statistics and use some of their influence to help the children of all nations. And, if influential people don't take notice, we common folk can each help the children of the world, our nation and our city with our limited resources. A few cans of food given to the Vaughn-Trent Community pantry right here in Bonner Springs can add up to a great deal of food if each of us contributes a little. Take time to do something about the children of today and you may save the world of tomorrow.