Feast of the Holy Innocentsand Modern Massacre of Innocents

Navez,  Massacre of the Innocents

Today the Church celebrates the memory of the Holy Innocents. King Herod feared the birth of the new "king of the Jews" so 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" (Matt 2:16).

Rather than focus on the theological implications of the feast day (others have done a great job of that already), I'd like to propose we use this day to reflect on the modern massacre of the innocents - abortion.

Modern Massacre of Innocents
Over 40 Million innocent babies have been killed in the United States since 1973 when Roe v. Wade legalized abortion in this country. These numbers do not even reflect the U.S. government's efforts to export abortion to other countries. In January 2009, President Obama overturned the Mexico City policy which had prohibited U.S. funding of international groups that provided abortions. The Obama administration has implemented a systematic, anti-life agenda which it continues to pursue including the HHS Mandate that requires employers who  provide healthcare to employees now must include coverage for contraception, sterilization and abortifacients in the healthcare plans they offer.

Our Lady of Guadalupe
It's not enough to just say we are pro-life, we have to act. First, we must pray. Our Lady of Guadalupe is the patroness of unborn children. We should ask for her intercession and offer up Holy Hours before the Blessed Sacrament for an end to abortion. Furthermore, we can ask our parishes to make sure that pro-life prayers are incorporated into the Prayers of the Faithful.

Humanae Vitae
Next, we need to get formed and informed. We need to form our consciences in conformity with the teachings of Christ handed down by the Church. This begins by learning what the Church teaches on these matters of life. Two very good resources are Humanae Vitae and the Catechism.

Taking Action
It's not enough for us to form our consciences, we need to act on them. In this recent presidential election too many people, Catholics included, voted with their pocket books and left their consciences at home. In addition to voting with our consciences we should support the efforts of organizations like 40 Days for Life, Priests for Life, Rachel's Vineyard and Pro Life Across America.

Culture of Life
We need to attack the culture of death with a culture of authentic love. We don't pass judgement, we provide compassion. We don't reject, we comfort. We don't take, we give. We don't lie, we share the Truth.

PRAYER

God of power and mercy,
you blessed the Americas at Tepeyac
with the presence of the Virgin Mary of Guadalupe.
May her prayers help all men and women
to accept each other as brothers and sisters.
Through your justice present in our hearts
may your peace reign in the world.
O Lady of Guadalupe, pray for the Church in America
and walk with us in the third millennium of faith.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
Amen.