The Holy Innocents

In the days of Herod, a cruel and uncaring man who thought of none but himself. He committed a crime that seems so heinous to the rest of us that it quite takes your breath away. To slaughter innocent babies, just so no one can threaten his position. One can feel nothing but sorrow for a person who had such low self esteem that he had to rule through fear and tyranny. A man truly filled with darkness that very little light could shine through. Sadly he is one among many who down through the ages have committed such crimes against the innocent.

But Christ came to bring light into the world. A light that would set men free from their own internal darkness, if only they are willing to open themselves up to receive this light.

The young children who lost their lives that terrible day became known as the Holy Innocents, martyrs, who shed their blood because of one mans deep desire to hang onto power. Did it work? Not at all. We know Christ was already on his way to safety. His foster father, St.Joseph having been warned in a dream rose and took the child and his Mother and escaped to Egypt.

But what of the children who died that day to protect God. Theirs is a legacy that has endured, a story that is still told. Those children remind us that we cannot stay standing at the crib gazing upon the Christ child but that we must lift our heads and resolutely turn towards the cross. Because that is where Christmas Day leads us to.
Christ warned us that we would have trouble in this world, but he also reminded us that he had overcome the world. So on this day let us remember all those who have died for their faith. Especially the innocent babies being lost everyday through someone else's choices. We remember those children who are suffering at the hands of warmongers or men and women of violence and we must pray for them.
 I think so often we feel overwhelmed "what can I do, I'm only one person"  we are paralyzed by fear and consequently we do nothing. But, if we consider what we have been given by virtue of our Baptism, that we are children of the light, and we begin to take that light into the world and earnestly seek for Gods' light to come into this  world, then we can rest assured that  it will!

In many countries, today is a day of celebrating children. It's a day when children can get up to mischief, a bit like our April fools day. In Spain they cut out paper figures and try and stick them on people's backs without them knowing. In other places they are allowed to "rule" for the day. The youngest member of the family gets to choose whats for dinner or what programs get watched on T.V. But however you choose to celebrate try and gather your little ones around the Christmas crib and pray for children everywhere.