BABIES, ANYONE?

She refuses to be comforted for they are dead. ? Matthew 2:18

Gemma had difficulty getting pregnant. She and her husband underwent several tests and treatments, until she finally conceived. Ecstasy!
    Rina could not have a baby so she and her husband decided to adopt a child. Joy!
    Fely and her husband couldn?t afford to have many children. So they had only two, after which, they resorted to artificial means so Fely wouldn?t get pregnant. Guilt.
    Bea got pregnant out of wedlock. Only then did she find out that her boyfriend had children with three other women, and was now living in with a new girlfriend. Bea, though bitter and angry, is keeping her baby. But she?s only 17, a minor, so her parents are suing her boyfriend. Sorrow.
    Myrna got pregnant also out of wedlock. She had an abortion, without even telling her boyfriend that she was pregnant. Her parents and her boyfriend found out anyway. Devastation.
    In today?s Gospel, a king sees children as a threat to his power and so he had them all killed.
    Yes, depending on one?s circumstances, children can be a joy or a pain, a treasure or a burden. God sees them only as His children, heirs of His kingdom. Saintcha

REFLECTION:
Have we allowed God to love us simply as His children?

Lord, bless all children and their parents today.

G O S P E L

Matthew 2:13-18

This was a dangerous time to be a young male child in Israel. Herod was out to kill them all for fear that his reign as king would be threatened by the birth of one whom people were claiming would be the King of Israel. Today we fight against another sort of self-genocide that we call abortion. It is rampant virtually throughout the whole world and it is something that we must address as inhuman before it desensitizes us to the gift and dignity of life. Let us stand firm in our belief of the dignity of the human person and seek to protect the lives of all people, no matter how small or helpless they may be.

13 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 Feast of the Holy Innocents Egypt, and stay there until I tell you. Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him.? 14 Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed for Egypt. 15 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.? 16 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. 17 Then was fulfilled what had been said through Jeremiah the prophet: 18 ?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.?

my reflections
think: Let us stand firm in our belief of the dignity of the human person and seek to protect the lives of all people, no matter how small or helpless they may be.

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T O D A Y ? S BLESSING LIST

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READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR Revelation 5-9

 It is very unfortunate that just because today is the Feast of the Holy Innocents (?Ninos Inocentes? as we call it), some people think it is alright to do practical jokes on anyone. I suppose ?innocents? here is gravely misunderstood.
      Innocence is not naivet?. Being innocent is not appearing ridiculous or being treated like a moron. It is not being stupid. Innocence means blamelessness. And these were what the children massacred by King Herod in his pursuit to kill the Baby Jesus. They were blameless and yet the blame seemed to be placed on them by the insane tetrarch.
      When the blameless become the blamed, they become martyrs. When the unblemished are violated, they are martyred. When the innocent are regarded guilty, they become martyrs.
      But who really is guilty in the massacre of the Holy Innocents?
      Not Jesus, but Herod. He is guilty of murder. The blood of the martyred children of Israel cries out to heaven for justice. Herod did not have his day in court, but he served his sentence. He never had a peaceful reign and his end was so horrible and disgusting. Scriptures say that he died, spitting out his bowels.
      Certainly, this day is not a joke. This is a day of serious reflection for us. Have we pronounced the innocent guilty? Have we violated the unblemished? Have we blamed the blameless? If we have, we may not have our day in court but we will serve our sentence.
      Anyone who wants to joke about this? Fr. Bobby T.

REFLECTION QUESTION:
What does this day mean to me?

?Father, the Holy Innocents offered You praise by the death they suffered for Christ. May our lives bear witness to the faith we profess with our lips.? Amen. (Opening Prayer of the Mass of the Holy Innocents).

Holy Innocents, martyrs, pray for us.