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Martyrdom and MysteryPreached at St. Barnabas Church, Bellville, TX Feast of the Holy Innocents, 2008 by The Rev. Stephen E. Stults
Matthew 2:16 Then
Herod, when he
saw that he was
mocked of the
wise men, was
exceeding wroth, Today we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Innocents. It is only fitting that the Church celebrates those little ones who were caught in the middle between the tyrannical wrath of a despot and the miraculous first advent of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. These little souls, chronicled in Matthew’s Gospel, felt the hatred and anger of a fallen world that would one day direct its full fury against the Incarnate Son of God at Calvary. They are, in fact, the Church’s first martyrs and for that we pay particular and poignant honor to them. What were the events surrounding such a heinous act and who was responsible for it? What significance do they have for us today in understanding the depravity of mankind, as well as the mystery of God’s love for us? How can our celebration of the Holy Innocents help us better to internalize the mystery of Christmas? These are important questions that need to be examined, that our Christmas joy may be full and profound. Matthew tells us in 2:1-3: “Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, 2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. 3 When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.” “Herod the King” has been named by history as Herod the Great. He was the second son of Antipater the Idumean, who enjoyed the backing of Rome under the Ethnarch Hyrcanus II. Herod himself was appointed by his father to rule as Governor of Galilee at age 25, while his older brother ruled Syria by similar appointment.1 Herod had a tumultuous reign by all accounts. His father, Antipater, was accused of providing financial support for Julius Caesar’s murderers and was poisoned. Later, Antigonus, the nephew of Hyrcanus II, tried to seize the throne from Herod. This plot was defeated by Herod, who crushed his enemy and retained the throne. In the midst of this, Herod married Antigonus’ teenage niece, thereby hoping for some legitimacy in Jewish eyes, as well as a claim to the throne. In so doing, he banished his own current wife, Doris and his three-year-old son.2 It’s important to realize that Herod the Great was not a Jew, but was a member of the Idumaen family that had settled in Edom. He also was heavily influenced by Hellenistic culture. Although he publicly identified himself as a Jew, observant Jews never regarded him as such. In fact, this view was further undermined when Herod convinced Mark Anthony and Octavian that his father was forced to assist Caesar’s murderers, thereby securing for himself appointment as tetrarch (“ruler of a quarter”) of Galilee. Two years after this, Antigonus again sought the throne, this time successfully, and Herod fled to Rome. He pled successfully before the Senate, who then elected him “King of the Jews” and sent legions to secure his rule. He reigned for 34 more years after that as sole ruler of Judea, founding the so-called Herodian dynasty. Herod thus was not an authentic Jewish monarch in the line of David, but was, a roman appointee and a foreigner. After all these machinations to remain in power, one might well understand the consternation that occurred when three Persian mystics arrived in Jerusalem, asking “Where is he that is born King of Jews?” Note that this is exactly the same title given to Herod by the Roman Senate. Thus, we better understand Herod’s concern and his “diligent” enquiry of the Magi as to the time and place where they first saw the star. We see him as a man who would do anything to remain in power, as later events clearly showed in the massacre of the Holy Innocents. Recall that two other Herods feature prominently in the New Testament. In today’s Gospel, one is mentioned, Herod Archelaus. This was the son of Herod the Great, who provided for his succession through will and testament. Herod first picked Aristobulus, his son by the Hasmonean princess, Miriam. This son, and his brother Alexander, were executed, while Herod’s oldest son, Antipater, was convicted of trying to poison him. This left Herod no choice but to fall back on his youngest son, Antipas, for the succession. Yet, in his final illness, the elderly Herod changed his mind one more time and appointed Archelaus as King of Judea, Idumea, and Samaria, while Antipas would rule Galilee and Perea as tetrarch. Another son named Philip was also included as ruler of the Golan Heights, northern Syrian and Haran. Yet, because of Palestine’s role as a subject state to Rome, all of this had to be ratified. So imagine, if you will, the scene as three contenders went to Rome to argue their case. Despite favor for Antipas, Augustus largely affirmed Herod the Great’s wishes. Archelaus would primarily rule, but would have the title of ethnarch, rather than king.3 The story continues. Eventually, Herod Archelaus would be deemed incompetent by Augustus, whereupon Herod Antipas assumed the throne. This, of course, is the same Herod who married his brother Philip’s wife, Herodias and brought the ire of John the Baptizer upon himself. This is the same Herod responsible for the death of John and of course, this is the same Herod who was implicit in the death of Jesus Christ our Lord. The reason for all this historical background is to give us some idea of the turbulent area in which God the Father sent his only Son to act as redeemer and savior. This is the area in which a tyrant King, Herod the Great, would find it necessary to kill, in cold blood, all of the male children two years old and younger. Imagine the effect this must have had on the soldiers ordered to do this unspeakable deed, as they ripped infants and toddlers out of the arms of their mothers and executed them with cold, hard steel. In those days, there was no such thing as an “unreasonable order” against which they could object. It was their merciless duty and they had to perform it. How hard, how unspeakably hard it was on all concerned! The murder of the Holy Innocents shows us, once again, of the depths of man’s depravity and his need for a Savior. It shows us that man, absent the moderating influence of Grace, will always fall to the lowest level possible. Aided by our Enemy below, the World, left to its own devices, will always be a place of cruel and dark habitations. Yet, in all of its barbarity and cruelty, the story of the Holy Innocents has a blessed side. Obviously, not to the wailing, heartbroken women whose infants and toddlers paid the ultimate price for Christ, or to the hard-bitten soldiers whose unfortunate duty it was to carry out the deed, as they left village after village strewn with little broken bodies. These people’s lives were affected in ways that we cannot fathom or imagine. Yet, as a means of solace, we know that the children martyrs themselves enjoy the highest place of honor in the Heavenly Kingdom, right under the Throne of God. We know that they are in bliss forever, in a place where no biting cold nor searing heat exists, or where no tear ever falls. We know that they are held in highest regard by the Church on earth and the Church in heaven, as those who gave their lives for Christ, some soon after their very birth. We know one more thing about this event. This event tells us of the magnitude of the mystery of Christmas. It tells us that even though we are what we are and the world is what it is, that nonetheless Christ our Savior came to us, to love us and redeem us. The mystery of Christmas is that despite the fact that unredeemed human nature has no limits to its depravity and despite the fact that it doesn’t want to hear anything on the subject, Christ came. He came not only to show us a better way, but also to redeem us from it. He came, “the Only Begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”4 What was the motive of this first Advent? Why would God bother with such a twisted, seething, mass that is humanity? How could he, why would he send us a Redeemer when we didn’t deserve it, or even know that we needed it? The answer to this is at once obvious and difficult, simple and profound. It is love. It is a love so deep, so mysterious, so intense, that it is beyond our comprehension. It is a love so complete and universal that only God could accomplish it. It is a love so jealous, so consuming that only once we are in eternity, will we begin to understand it. The question for us today is whether we will allow ourselves to be ravished, gloriously, by this love. Will we give ourselves to it, wholly and without reservation? Will we allow it to be the centerpiece of our lives, knowing that our lives are indeed hid in Him? Will we echo the wonderful words of the Apostle John when he said, “We love him, because he first loved us.”?5 That is the question for this Christmas season of 2008. We have a choice, as we always do. Will we allow this wonderful mystery of Christmas penetrate to the very marrow of our soul, knowing that He on whom the Star shone at Bethlehem is the same One with us today? Will we make this most blessed time a most meaningful time, or will we just move on to the New Year? After all Christmas Day is already past, right? Nonetheless, let us pray that this mystery of Christmas pervades our souls and our spirits in a new and deeper way. Let us pray that the Christmas wonder is with us all year long, indwelling our souls and spirits. Matthew 2:15 15 “... and (the Holy Family) was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called My Son." 1“Herod the Great,” Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org 2 Ib id. 3“Herod Archelaus,” Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herod_Antipas 4John 1:14 5I John 4:19 |
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