Whether it is by tyrants ordering mass killings or by lunatics opening fire on school children, too often in the past several years the massacre of innocents has been headline news.
The commemoration of the Holy Innocents, the children murdered by Herod’s order according to the Gospel of Matthew, falls on December 28th. The coincidence of
we have the example of two entirely different families in this week’s gospel. The family of Jesus lives to love God and neighbor. The family of Herod wants all of life’s goodies and they will do anything to get them and keep them. Which family do we follow?
Here’s the good news: We don’t have to live like that. One sacrifice has been made, once for all. The word became flesh, it dwelt among us, and in solidarity with humanity, Jesus took on the cosmic violence that had been our inheritance.