Does a baby have inherent value by being created in the image of God, or is his worth derivative from the ‘choice’ of someone else? Does the state have the authority to facilitate the slaughter of innocent children in order to meet needs within the adult community?
While questions such as these are at the forefront of today’s abortion controversy, the basic issues they raise are nothing new. In fact, these very issues were raised when Herod “the Great” massacred all the infant babies in Bethlehem in order to satisfy his own selfish needs.
As I noted earlier today, today has traditionally been set aside for remembering the Holy Innocents who perished in Bethlehem under the sword of Herod (Matthew 2). The Feast was instituted between 400 and 500 AD by the Latin speaking church and intentionally placed within the octave of Christmas to emphasize that the Holy Innocents – considered by many to be the church’s first martyrs - gave their life for the newborn Saviour.
The Feast is a time when the church annually reaffirms her commitment to the sanctity of life. As George Grant recently observed,
It has long been the focus of the Christian Church’s commitment to protect and preserve the sanctity of human life--thus serving as a prophetic warning against the practicioners of abandonment and infanticide in the age of Antiquity, oblacy and pessiary in the Medieval epoch, and abortion and euthanasia in these Modern times.
Today is a time for us to mourn, not only over the Bethlehem martyrs, but over the tens of thousands of innocent victims who have been slain on the altar of the abortion industry. It is a time for us to pray against the modern day Herods who continue to act on the assumption that an infant derived its value (and hence its right to live) from members of the adult community.
Unfortunately, many of the historical details concerning the Bethlehem Massacre and the journey of the Magi are often overlooked. In my recent article, “The Magi, the Massacre and Herod the Horrible", I explore the history of Herod the Great and his family, suggesting some reasons why Herod found the Christ-child to be such a threat after learning about His existence from the travelling Magi.
Further Reading:
The Magi, the Massacre and Herod the Horrible
Articles About Abortion
Unfortunately, many of the historical details concerning the Bethlehem Massacre and the journey of the Magi are often overlooked. In my recent article, “The Magi, the Massacre and Herod the Horrible", I explore the history of Herod the Great and his family, suggesting some reasons why Herod found the Christ-child to be such a threat after learning about His existence from the travelling Magi.
Further Reading:
The Magi, the Massacre and Herod the Horrible
Articles About Abortion
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