For Those Who Were Not

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

On this day, the earth rings once again. But whereas only a few short days ago, the earth was ringing with the exultant cries of the angels in the Judean sky and the joyous songs of all creation at the birth of our Savior, now the earth rings with the blood-curdling wailing of the mothers of Bethlehem mourning for their sons who are now no more – slaughtered at the command of lunatic Herod. Instead of “Glory to God in the highest, and peace to His people on earth!” is now heard “weeping and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be comforted, because they are no more.”

The Magi – wise men from the East – had passed through the courts of Herod in Jerusalem. That great pretender, the usurper to the throne of David, feared for his ill-gotten position, and so he plotted how he might rid the land of this newborn King of the Jews. When the Lord thwarted his plans by sending the Magi home another way, Herod determined to spend his murderous wrath on the whole land. So he gave the decree to have all male children in the region of Bethlehem two years old and younger slaughtered, according to the time he had ascertained from the wise men.

All this took place while our Lord was spirited away to Egypt, his guardian Joseph having been warned in a dream to flee with the Child and His mother. So the Holy Innocents of Bethlehem shed their blood in order that the Christ Child might not spill His yet.

Such a slaughter is an unqualified tragedy, to be sure. However, we should not be so terribly shocked when such events happen. After all, the prince of this world always seeks after what is not his. It is his nature; it is what led to his downfall in the first place – seeking the throne of God for his own. So he seeks to lay hold of whatever he can.

He lays siege to the throne of David in the name of Herod. Herod, being an Idumean and Edomite, was not considered a real Jew according to the Covenant, and therefore the Jews of Jerusalem rejected his claims to the throne or his taking up the title “King of the Jews”, even though it was accorded him by the Emperor. Because he was considered an usurper, as well as on account of his ruthless tyranny, Herod was detested by the Jews. He feared for his throne and his power, because the Jews had a long history of rebelling against and deposing foreign usurpers of David's throne.

The prince of this world also sought, through Herod, to lay hold of the allegiance of the Magi. They were diplomatic enough to call at Herod's court, making a state visit to inquire about the location of the newborn King of the Jews – the real King. Because they paid him state honors, Herod thought he could claim the loyalty of these mysterious eastern visitors. But they were warned by the Lord to avoid Herod, and to return to their land by another route. So the devil also lost that attempt.

And so, mad King Herod was incited to great fury because “his” kingdom was slipping away from him. As one church father put it, “Herod was 'exceedingly wroth' that they whom he, sitting on his throne, had no power to move were obedient to an infant lying in a manger.” He wished to claim the affections and the loyalties of the hearts and minds of the people of Israel, and was driven to madness when his insane policies, brutal executions, and macabre spectacles failed to accomplish this end.

This is the way of the devil. He seeks after what is not his, and if he cannot have it, he tries to destroy it. It does not matter what. After all, this is what he has been doing to the human race since the Garden of Eden.

Since the devil cannot capture the Infant Lord, he will breathe out his murderous rage upon the boy-children of Bethlehem. He incites Herod to send forth and kill them, who are too young to have violated any sort of human law, other than simply being born male in the wrong time in history. They are destroyed, just as the prophet Jeremiah foretold, and their mothers wail while the streets run with blood. And even after the slaughter of the Holy Innocents, Herod's murderous rage is not soothed.

This is but one example of the blood-lust of the devil. In every age, in every place, he incites sinful men and women to destroy the lives that our Lord has created. In as many ways as there are people, man thinks up new and more devious ways to kill his fellow man. This is why the Feast of the Holy Innocents has become a prime day to remember the defenseless children whose lives have been destroyed not by the kings of the age, but by their parents and doctors.

What he cannot have, the devil seeks to destroy. He seeks to destroy the life that God has given to the least of these His children – the weak, the defenseless, those who cannot speak for themselves or cry out for mercy. The devil would have the matter couched in terms of selective termination, reproductive rights, feminine autonomy, and so forth. He would have you think of the issue in terms of ensuring the happiness of the woman, of maximizing the good for the people who already are, as opposed to the one who only might be a person.

The Lord God is the author of life, and He declares each life that He creates a gift and a blessing. But the devil would have you believe that the meaning of life depends on potential, on usefulness, on desirability. He would have you condone the murder of children, just like Herod.

Likewise, the devil attacks the other end of the spectrum – the elderly and infirm. So often these “least ones” are filled with the faith once delivered to the saints, and so they are not the possession of the devil. But he breathes out murderous threats and lies against them. They are not useful. They are not productive. They take up space and use up precious resources. Their suffering is not worthy to be borne by them or by anyone else. They have a right, even a duty, to die – to shove off and make room.

The devil attacks the faith of these who suffer, who are left alone without the consolation of the Body of Christ. He would have them believe that they are unworthy, that they are unloved, that they are alone, that there is no one who cares for them. And so he would deceive them into doubt, despair, and other great shame and vice.

And the devil would have you stand by and look the other way while the slaughter of the innocents happens. “I don't believe in that; but who am I to tell someone else what to do” becomes the byword of the age. The burdens of the unexpectedly expectant mother, the infirm and aged widow, and the defenseless child – these are not your problem, whispers the spirit of this age. You need not bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of faith.

And so, Rachel weeps for those who are not. She weeps for the children of Jerusalem who were taken by force by the Babylonians, whose death Jeremiah foretold. She weeps for the boys of Bethlehem who were slaughtered by a word from Herod. She weeps for the 53 million children of this land who have never seen their mother's face.

Weep you also, you children of Zion, you daughters of Jerusalem. Weep for the slaughter of all the innocents in every time and every land. Weep for those killed by the ones charged with protecting them. Weep also for those whom you have slain in your hearts by your anger, your jealousy, your lack of mercy. Weep for them, and repent.

“Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah: 'A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be comforted, because they are no more.'” Rachel weeps for her children who are no more, and she refuses to be comforted.

But Rachel does not refuse to be comforted because she despairs. Rather, she refuses to be comforted because no one needs to be comforted at the possession of great gain. For the lost children of Israel, the Holy Innocents of Bethlehem have by a martyr's death obtained the crown of life. They wait among the band under the Great Altar of the Lord until the day when the number of their brethren will be complete. Rachel will not be comforted in this life, but she transfers all her hope and comfort to the life to come.

For Rachel knows that her Redeemer lives. Your Redeemer lives. The One for whom the Holy Innocents died has died for them, and for all His people. The Son of God, our Savior Jesus Christ, has lived because of the sacrifice of the Holy Innocents, and so He has died not by Herod's hand, but upon the cross, that He might accomplish all things needful for us men and for our salvation. The Lord cannot be killed except by His will.

The Holy Innocents gave their lives so that the Light of the World might shine into the darkness of Egypt, and from there be called forth into the world, to come to Mount Zion, to the city of God. He remains safe from Herod's murderous rage, so that He might lay down His life at the appointed time to save mankind. He has laid down His life, so that He might pick it up again, and that He might lead forth the captives into the kingdom of heaven.

He has laid down His life so that you might be forgiven of your sins, of all your sins. He has died for all sins, whether laziness or wrath in your heart, failure to help those whom you could, or murder of the unborn, infirm, or aged. Your sins are no more, because you are in Christ.

Rachel mourns for those who are no more, for those who have been slaughtered, but she does not receive the false comfort of this world and this age. Rather, she receives the peace that passes all understanding, knowing that her children are preserved safely at the bosom of her Lord in heaven. You have this same comfort. You do not mourn as those who have no hope, but you confess, and shall continue to confess, “I believe … the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.”

It is as St. John Chrysostom says, then: “They, therefore, who are wronged, are not wronged if they bear nobly all that they suffer, yea, rather they gain even more abundantly, whether they be smitten of God, or scourged by the devil.” The devil breathes out murderous threats against the children of God, and he would take the Kingdom by force. But those who suffer in hope obtain the fulfillment of their faith, the deliverance from all evil.

The devil may silence the voices of the Innocents upon this earth, but the Holy One of Israel has the last word: “Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” Come, you blessed saints – receive the Lord who has given His life that you may life. Be comforted and at peace by the forgiveness of all your sins. Worship the King of the Jews who sits on an everlasting throne, whose people shall live, even though they die.

In the Name of Jesus. Amen.