Word to the Wise
Friday, December 28, 2007 - Holy Innocents, martyrs
[1 John 1:5 - 2:2 and Matthew 2:13-18]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.
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2007 THE HOLY INNOCENTS, martyrs [1 John 1:5 - 2:2 and Matthew 2:13-18] 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! When I was a novice, oh so many years ago (1964-65) the feast of the Holy Innocents meant putting on a play for the senior community. The feast has taken on newer significance to our own times. The gospel writer was aware of a tradition that spoke of a danger to the newborn "King of the Jews," as the Magi called him. He expressed it in terms parallel with Moses, whose own life was spared in Egypt by Pharoah's daughter after a decree that Hebrew male children were to be thrown into the Nile River. The underlying theme of danger expresses well the significance for the feast of Holy Innocents in our own time. Although the scourge of abortion comes readily to mind, the danger to children born and alive is much broader. There is domestic abuse and sex abuse and labor abuse! There is child pornography, child slavery, international trade in children for adoption! There is violence and starvation! Perhaps the most terrifying overall danger is that children have become a commodity. They are no longer persons but property. Even the medical advances in amniocentesis and sonography are being used to make sure a child is the right sex, etc. before allowing it to come to birth. (In some countries, unwanted female children are simply killed.) Thus the child becomes a consumer item. On the feast of the Holy Innocents, it is wise to remember that destructive adults are the primary cause of the suffering of children. May our prayers and efforts be directed at assuring a safer future for all children! AMEN
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