28 December 2010

28 Dec 2010, Feast of the Holy Innocents, martyrs

Reading 1
1 Jn 1:5—2:2


Beloved:
This is the message that we have heard from Jesus Christ
and proclaim to you:
God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all.
If we say, “We have fellowship with him,”
while we continue to walk in darkness,
we lie and do not act in truth.
But if we walk in the light as he is in the light,
then we have fellowship with one another,
and the Blood of his Son Jesus cleanses us from all sin.
If we say, “We are without sin,”
we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
If we acknowledge our sins, he is faithful and just
and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from every wrongdoing.
If we say, “We have not sinned,” we make him a liar,
and his word is not in us.

My children, I am writing this to you
so that you may not commit sin.
But if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father,
Jesus Christ the righteous one.
He is expiation for our sins,
and not for our sins only but for those of the whole world.

Ps 124:2-3, 4-5, 7cd-8
Responsorial PsalmR. (7)


Our soul has been rescued like a bird from the fowler’s snare.
Had not the LORD been with us—
When men rose up against us,
then would they have swallowed us alive,
When their fury was inflamed against us.
R. Our soul has been rescued like a bird from the fowler’s snare.
Then would the waters have overwhelmed us;
The torrent would have swept over us;
over us then would have swept the raging waters.
R. Our soul has been rescued like a bird from the fowler’s snare.
Broken was the snare,
and we were freed.
Our help is in the name of the LORD,
who made heaven and earth.
R. Our soul has been rescued like a bird from the fowler’s snare.

Gospel
Mt 2:13-18


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.

Meditation: Matthew 2:13-18

The Holy Innocents


Rachel weeping for her children. (Matthew 2:18)

What a hard life Rachel had! Both she and her sister, Leah, were married to Jacob, and while Leah gave Jacob many sons, Rachel just couldn’t get pregnant. One day, in her distress, Rachel cried out to Jacob: “Give me children or I shall die!” (Genesis 30:1). Jacob, too, was frustrated because he knew that only God could give life. But God answered Rachel’s prayer. She named her first child Joseph, which means, “May the Lord add another son” (30:24). God heard that prayer as well and gave her another child years later. However, it was a complicated labor, and Rachel ended up dying in childbirth. Before she passed, however, she named the baby Benoni, which means “Son of my sorrow.” But Jacob—who loved Rachel deeply—called him Benjamin, “Son of my right hand” (35:18).

For centuries, Rachel’s tomb was honored by the people of Israel. Her sad story touched them, and they held a special place for her in their hearts. In fact, when the prophet Jeremiah saw the Babylonian soldiers marching the children of Israel—descendants of Rachel—into exile, he said it was like he was feeling Rachel’s anguish all over again (Jeremiah 31:15).

In today’s Gospel, King Herod’s order to kill all the baby boys in Bethlehem reminds Matthew of Jeremiah’s prophecy. In the death of these helpless, innocent children, Matthew sees Rachel weeping over her children once more. He sees mothers grieving their horrible loss.

Rachel continues to weep today, this time over the millions of children who are victims of abortions. Who could not be moved by this assault on innocent lives? But even as we mourn with Rachel, we must have hope. We must believe that God will have the final word and that it will be a word of triumph. We need to pray for an end to abortion. We need to work for an end to abortion. But we also need to remember God’s words to Jeremiah: “Wipe the tears from your eyes… . There is hope for your future… . Your sons will return” (Jeremiah 31:16,17). God will turn this horrible situation around. He is the Lord of Life and he will have the victory!

“Father, teach us how to build a culture of life on the earth. May every child be loved and welcomed into life!”

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