Daily Gospel Reflection

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December 28, 2023

Feast of the Holy Innocents - Martyrs
Mt 2:13-18
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When the magi had departed, behold,
the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said,
“Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt,
and stay there until I tell you.
Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him.”
Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night
and departed for Egypt.
He stayed there until the death of Herod,
that what the Lord had said through the prophet might be fulfilled,
Out of Egypt I called my son.

When Herod realized that he had been deceived by the magi,
he became furious.
He ordered the massacre of all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity
two years old and under,
in accordance with the time he had ascertained from the magi.
Then was fulfilled what had been said through Jeremiah the prophet:

A voice was heard in Ramah,
sobbing and loud lamentation;
Rachel weeping for her children,
and she would not be consoled,
since they were no more.

Reflection

Rev. Christopher P. Christensen '06
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The loud cry of anguish from mothers mourning the loss of their murdered children isn’t exactly a theme you’d expect or desire around Christmastime—or any time for that matter. And yet, here we are. The church never separates Christmas and the beginning of Christ’s life from its ultimate culmination and fulfillment, the paschal mystery. In fact, the image of Mary holding baby Jesus in her arms in Bethlehem is easily juxtaposed with the Pieta at the foot of the cross.

These tiny witnesses to Jesus, the Holy Innocents, certainly remove any illusions of the possibility of a perfect earth without any pain or suffering, even with the coming of Christ. Their witness is echoed in our own day with the loss of so many children inside and outside the womb, modern Holy Innocents who remind us that only one innocent victim can save us: Jesus.

And every mother who mourns the loss of her child, whether through miscarriage, abortion, or some other tragedy, feels the cry of Rachel weeping for her children. Mary, the Mother of Sorrows, whose immaculate heart was pierced with a sword at the cross, knows what it is to lose a Holy Innocent, and allows her heart to reverberate with the cries of each of them.

Her heart beats in sync with theirs as she walks along with them through this valley of tears to the joys of the resurrection. What love this woman of sorrows has for her children! What meaning this suffering can adopt when surrendered to Our Lady!

Prayer

Rev. Thomas McNally, C.S.C.

Lord, we read today about the death of innocent children whom Herod killed in his rage. How many innocent children have been massacred over the ages by those who mock your rule of peace! Give us the courage and insight to do everything we can to bring about a world of peace where the innocent no longer are slaughtered. Amen.

Saint of the Day

Feast of the Holy Innocents

The story of the slaughter of the Holy Innocents is part of the narrative of Jesus’ birth. Herod governed the Jewish portion of the Roman Empire when Jesus was born. When he heard that people looked for the birth of a new “king of the Jews,” and that scholars from the east had already come to worship him, Herod felt threatened.

He learned that this Messiah was to be born in Bethlehem, and sent for the visiting magi. He cross-examined them to learn what they knew, then told them to report back to him after they found the child under the pretense that he, Herod, wanted to pay homage as well. The magi were warned in a dream to avoid returning to Herod, so they went home a different way.

At the same time, an angel warned Joseph to flee with Mary and Jesus to Egypt because “Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him” (Mt 2:13). The image below, which stands in the Beichner Married Student Housing Center chapel, depicts the Holy Family's flight to Egypt.

Image from the Beichner Married Student Housing Center at Notre Dame

When Herod learned that the magi had deceived him, he became furious and ordered the murder of all the boys in and near Bethlehem 2 years old or younger.

Herod was a barbaric ruler responsible for many crimes and slaughters. Tradition has inferred the slaughter of the Bethlehem children to have killed many children--anywhere from 14,000 to 144,000--but it is not likely that nearly this many were killed. Estimating by the size of Bethlehem, including its surroundings, there could not have been more than 25 baby boys 2 years old or younger at any given time.

The feast of the Holy Innocents has been remembered by the Church since the fifth century. These children are venerated as martyrs of sorts—they died not only for Christ but actually instead of Christ. St. Augustine called them buds killed by the frost of persecution the moment they showed themselves.

"Massacre of the Innocents" from the Raclin Murphy Museum of Art

The Holy Innocents are honored as patrons of babies, and some of the relics in the Basilica reliquary chapel indicate that they come from these children (read more about the status of relics in the reliquary chapel here). Today's featured image, which depicts their slaughter, is part of the collection in the Raclin Murphy Museum of Art on campus and is used with their permission.

Holy Innocents, you were killed in the place of Christ and are patron saints of all infants—pray for us!


Image Credit: Studio of Ludovico Mazzolino (Italian), Massacre of the Innocents, early 16th century, oil on copper. Raclin Murphy Museum of Art: Gift of Dr. M. L. Busch, 1953.006.