Monday, 28 December 2009

The Holy Innocents, martyrs – Feast

Today the Church celebrates : Holy Innocents, Martyrs – Feast

See commentary below or click here
Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross [Edith Stein] : The Holy Innocents, poor as Christ is poor

First Letter of John 1:5-10.2:1-2.

Now this is the message that we have heard from him 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.

Psalms 124(123):2-3.4-5.7-8.

Had not the LORD been with us, when people rose against us,
They would have swallowed us alive, for their fury blazed against us.
The waters would have engulfed us, the torrent overwhelmed us;
seething waters would have drowned us.
We escaped with our lives like a bird from the fowler’s snare; the snare was broken and we escaped.
Our help is the name of the LORD, the maker of heaven and earth.

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 2:13-18.

When they 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.

Copyright © Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, USCCB

Commentary of the day :

Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross [Edith Stein] (1891-1942), Carmelite, martyr, co-patron of Europe
Meditation for the 6 January 1941 (©Institute of Carmelite Studies)

The Holy Innocents, poor as Christ is poor

Not far from Stephen, the first martyr, stand the «flores martyrum», the tender buds that were broken before they had ripened to the act of sacrifice. There is a pious belief that the grace of natural maturity came to the innocent children beforehand and gave them an understanding of what was happening to them so they could give themselves freely and thus be ensured martyrdom. Even so, they do not resemble the valiant confessor who heroically took on the cause of Christ. In their defenseless surrender, they are much more like lambs led to the slaughter (Is 53,7; Ac 8,32).

So they are the example of uttermost poverty. They have no other goods than their lives. And now even that is taken from them, and they allow it to happen without resistance. They surround the manger to show us what kind of myrrh we are to bring to the Divine Child: those who want to belong entirely to him must deliver themselves to him in complete self-renunciation; they must surrender to the divine decision like these children.