Augustana Lutheran Church of Hyde Park

On this fourth day of Christmas, we mark the Feast of the Holy Innocents, when, by tradition, we remember the children of Bethlehem who were slaughtered by order of King Herod, in his attempt to eliminate the infant Jesus.

There is so much meaning in this story, here are Martin Luther’s thoughts on it:

“The slaughter by Herod of all the children of Bethlehem and the regions about was a piece of sheer barbarism, but doubt not that Herod would find a plausible defense so that people would regard it, not as tyranny, but as necessary severity…and let no one doubt that Herod could devise a good case for the slaughter of the innocents.

“He could plausibly argue that it were better to bereave a few hundred fathers and mothers of their children then to ruin the whole land. Thus Herod and his men took the sword, and became frightful murderers even though they put out such a persuasive defense that everyone thought they were keeping the peace.”

This tradition calls us to remember all the innocent children that are victims of abuse, injustice, murder, neglect and violence, of all times and all places. According to Luther, the story also urges us to be skeptical of arguments for war and the killing of innocents, including children, as a necessity.