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| “The Massacre of the Innocents” by Daniele da Volterra, 1557 |
Commentary:
Reading 1: 1 John 1:5—2:2
Commentary on 1 Jn 1:5—2:2
We are given, in this selection, a foundational scripture passage upon which the Sacrament of Reconciliation rests. The logic St. John uses flows nicely: Jesus, the Christ, is light. When we sin we walk in darkness. When we admit our sin, the Lord who is “expiation for our sins,” brings us back into the light. If we try to deceive ourselves, saying we are not sinful, we fall, and in a sense make Jesus’ sacrifice meaningless.
“Light is to be understood here as truth and goodness; darkness here is error and depravity (cf John 3:19-21; 17:17; Ephesians 5:8). To walk in light or darkness is to live according to truth or error, not merely intellectual but moral as well. Fellowship with God and with one another consists in a life according to the truth as found in God and in Christ.” Then for v. 8-10: “Denial of the condition of sin is self-deception and even contradictory of divine revelation; there is also the continual possibility of sin's recurrence. Forgiveness and deliverance from sin through Christ are assured through acknowledgment of them and repentance.”[4] The final verses of this selection profess the Trinity as One God: “…we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous one.”
CCC: 1 Jn 1:5 214; 1 Jn 1:6 2470; 1 Jn 1:7-2:2 2631; 1 Jn 1:8-10 827; 1 Jn 1:8-9 1847; 1 Jn 1:8 1425; 1 Jn 1:10 2147;1 Jn 2:1-2 1460; 1 Jn 2:1 519, 692, 2634; 1 Jn 2:2 605, 606
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 124:2-3, 4-5, 7cd-8
R. (7) Our soul has been rescued like a bird from the fowler’s snare.
Commentary on Ps 124:2-3, 4-5, 7cd-8
The psalm is one of thanksgiving to the Lord for his gift of salvation: salvation from physical enemies and salvation from nature’s fury. The song thanks God who rescues us if we but reach out to him.
CCC: Ps 124:8 287
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Gospel: Matthew 2:13-18
Commentary on Matthew 2:13-18
St. Matthew provides the story of the slaughter of the innocent children of Bethlehem. We are told how Herod, in his frustration at being deceived by the magi, sends troops to kill all the male children under the age of two. We are also reminded that this event, and the warning received by Joseph to take the infant Jesus to Egypt, were both predicted in scripture.
In this ironic twist, the saga of Moses is replayed in an inverse way. A slaughter of innocents preceded his advent, and the trek to Egypt by the Holy Family recalls the exodus event now relived by the Savior. “The fulfillment citation is taken from Hosea 11:1. Israel, God's son, was called out of Egypt at the time of the Exodus; Jesus, the Son of God, will similarly be called out of that land in a new exodus. The father-son relationship between God and the nation is set in a higher key. Here the son is not a group adopted as 'son of God,' but the child who, as conceived by the Holy Spirit, stands in unique relation to God. He is son of David and of Abraham, of Mary and of Joseph, but, above all, of God.”[5] The passage concludes with a quote of Jeremiah 31:15 in which Rachel is weeping for children taken into exile at the time of the Assyrian invasion (722 BC). Tradition holds her lament was so profound it was heard for miles.
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Reflection:
In this feast day we remember the innocent lives of the first martyrs for Christ. St. Matthew describes how Herod, in great fear of losing his kingship, commits the sin of Pharaoh, murdering innocent babes. In doing so, he turned his back on the one who could assure him a kingship eternal and in peace.
The current world-wide assault on the sanctity of life brings this story into sharp focus. There is a great danger facing mankind and secular leadership already stands at the precipice of a very slippery slope (some say they are already hurtling toward the pit). When this Gospel story of infanticide is told we immediately think of the struggle between the opponents of life and those who find life sacred. This debate is not just about abortion. It has truly reached into our homes and touches each one of us. If we take the position that an embryo is not a human life until the fetus draws breath and is born, all manner of moral issues are brought into contention – not just the most recent decision to allow human embryos to be destroyed in the name of stem cell research, but the entire idea that human life has value at all is placed in question.
In the United States: in the state of Oregon we already see the path this lack of respect for human life can take. Not only does Oregon allow doctor assisted suicide, but its state sponsored medical coverage has placed a dollar value on a person’s life. Using a formula that must have been inspired by Herod himself, a person’s quality of life is evaluated before certain types of life-saving medical procedures will be authorized. If, under the formula, an expensive procedure like hip replacement is requested by a person who may only have a few years left in their expected life, it will be rejected. The state considers the expenditure wasted because that person may only be made marginally more comfortable for an anticipated short period of time.
It is not a large leap from the destruction of embryos and the devaluing of human life to government-sponsored pregnancy in which the embryos are harvested for research (while the government did not sponsor the pregnancy per se, Planned Parenthood seems to have assumed the role of “parts broker” in this scenario). Or to allow children who are lobotomized in the womb or manipulated outside the womb in a lab to be born without any possibility of intellect, so their organs may be harvested – same principle as the destruction of embryos for stem cell research, just taken to the next step. They would, after all, not really be people.
Today also, we join with our Holy Father, Pope Francis, in praying for those innocents dying daily in the Northern Africa and the Middle-East, Iraq, Syria, Palestine, and Egypt where Muslims are waging a war on all Christians.
When we think about Herod’s heinous act we should ask those infant martyrs to pray for us that we might continue the fight for the sanctity of life in all its phases. With God all things are possible, perhaps with enough of our prayers some of those who care only for themselves may be brought to the light of understanding.
Pax
[1] The picture is “The Massacre of the Innocents” by Daniele da Volterra, 1557
[4] See NAB footnote on 1 John 1:1-5
[5] See NAB footnote on Matthew 2:15
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