Innocent children, who were killed for Christ's sake, follow the spotless Lamb and sing without ceasing: Glory to you, O Lord!

The Holy Innocents reflect a story of pain and tears caused by Herod's cruelty. They are an image of Jesus himself, who identified with the least of the little ones in the Kingdom. Let us ask the Lord to grant us purity of heart and firmness in the profession of our faith. First Reading: 1 John 1:5-2:2 Reading from the first letter of Saint John – Beloved, 5This is the message that we have heard from Jesus Christ and proclaim to you: God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all. 6If we say that we have fellowship with him while walking in the darkness, we are lying and are not guided by the truth. 7But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of his Son, Jesus, purifies us from all sin. 8If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9If we acknowledge our sins, then God is faithful and just, to forgive us our sins and to purify us from all guilt. 10If we say we have never sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. 2:1My little children, I am writing this so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. – The word of the Lord. Responsorial Psalm: 123(124) Our soul, like a bird, has escaped / from the snare of the fowler. 1. If the Lord had not been on our side / when men attacked us, / surely they would have devoured us / in their fury against us. – R. 2. Then the waters would have overwhelmed us, / the current would have swept us away / and then the ever-increasing waters would have swept over us. – R. 3. The snare was suddenly broken, / and we were freed. / Our help is in the name of the Lord, / the Lord who made heaven and earth! – R. Gospel: Matthew 2,13-18 Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia. To you, O God, we praise, to you, O Lord, we sing; / the army of your holy martyrs praises you! – R. Proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Matthew – 13After the Magi had left, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt; stay there until I tell you. For Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” 14 So Joseph got up during the night, took the child and his mother and left for Egypt. 15 He stayed there until Herod died, so that what the Lord had said through the prophet might be fulfilled: “Out of Egypt I called my son.” 16 When Herod realized that the magicians had tricked him, he was furious. He ordered that all the boys in Bethlehem and all the surrounding region two years old and under be killed, just as the magicians had said. 17 Then what was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: 18 “A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and loud lamentation; Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more.” – Word of salvation. Reflection: The Holy Innocents did not even come to realize themselves. Their lives could not blossom. Their lips were prevented from praising God. However, their innocent blood bathed the earth and awaited another innocent blood, that of Jesus, shed in redemption of sinful humanity. The Holy Innocent Martyrs: the first link in an endless chain of other innocents, whose lives were cut short, sometimes for frivolous reasons: abortions, wars and accidents of various kinds. The slaughter of the innocents leaves a repugnant mark on history and makes us vehemently repudiate the insane and cruel attitude of any person who takes possession of the life of another or their own, in order to destroy it. The Lord of life is only God. The Holy Innocent Martyrs have been celebrated since the 6th century. (Daily with the Gospel 2024)