St. Stephen was martyred after he boldly witnessed to the mystery of Christ’s passion, death, and resurrection.

Today’s martyrs, on the other hand, bore witness to the passion of the Christ before it happened.

Even today, when we hear of meaningless persecution and the deaths of so many innocents, the Church as mother weeps.

In a way it was, The Holy Innocents foreshadowed the passion of Christ.

 

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊ 

1 John 1:5-2:2

We heard his message,

From him, and announce it to you: God is light and there is no darkness in him.

If we say we are in fellowship with him, while we walk in darkness, we lie, instead of being in truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we are in fellowship with one another; and the blood of Jesus, the Son of God, purifies us from all sin.

If we say, "We have no sin," we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he, who is faithful and just, will forgive us our sins, and cleanse us from all wickedness.

If we say that we do not sin, we make God a liar, his word is not in us.

My little children, I write to you, that you may not sin. But if anyone sins, we have an intercessor with the Father, Jesus Christ, the Just One. He is the sacrificial victim, for our sins, and the sins of the whole world.

 

Ps 124:2-3, 4-5, 76-8

Our soul has been rescued like a bird from the fowler's snare.

 

＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊    

Matthew 2:13-18

After the wise men had left, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph and said, "Get up, take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod will soon be looking for the child in order to kill him." 

Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and left that night for Egypt, where he stayed until the death of Herod. In this way, what the Lord had said through the prophet was fulfilled: I called my son out of Egypt.

When Herod found out that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was furious. He gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its neighborhood who were two years old or under. This was done, according to what he had learned from the wise men about the time when the star appeared. 

In this way, what the prophet Jeremiah had said was fulfilled: A cry is heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation: Rachel weeps for her children. She refuses to be comforted, for they are no more.

 

Gospel Reflection ：

"May we rededicate ourselves to efforts to protect the children in our world."

Once again sadness and pain intrude on our Christmas joy. We who three short days ago rejoiced over the birth of a baby now mourn the countless children sacrificed to Herod's anger and greed. We share the pain of their parents whose precious babies were taken away and killed for reasons they could not comprehend.

 

We cannot deny the presence of darkness and sin in our world. Too many parents suffer the loss of infants before or shortly after birth. In many places, the years of childhood are filled with hunger and disease. Later, violence, poverty, and abuse threaten children's well-being. All too often, these children are put at risk because of our hate, greed, and indifference.

 

So focused on our own desires, we disregard our vulnerable brothers and sisters and treat them as though they are disposable and of little value. In memory of the Holy Innocents, may we rededicate ourselves to efforts to protect the children in our world.