Posts

Showing posts from December 25, 2011

Rachel Weeping

“Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying: “A voice was heard in Ramah, Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, Refusing to be comforted, Because they are no more”” (Matthew 2.16-18). So the story goes! Imagine the parents wailing as the gruff soldiers slammed through their doors, cleared the houses, yanking up the frightened infants and startled toddlers from sleeping mats, out of mother’s arms, and away from dirt-floor homes. The crying sounds, blood and carnage spewing through the air, while helpless mothers and fathers are held back at spear point. What despair must have drowned their parental hearts! In a strange way, these infants and