Today we have the doleful task of remembering the Holy Innocents. Herod ordered the massacre of all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity two years old and under. Such cruelty is not limited to ancient times and despotic tyrants. Today innocent people seeking asylum in the United States are put on busses and dropped at random times in random places in an attempt to score political points. One hopes that the governors ordering this are not cruel men but the end result is certainly cruelty inflicted on people who are just seeking help. How does something like this happen? Ultimately when we lose sight of the individuals involved and only see a class or a group we lose perspective. Herod only saw the group of “two year old boys” and not the beloved sons of their mothers. The governors only see “immigrants” and not Jose and Maria and the rest who only seek a better life for themselves and their children. Today let us invoke Joseph and Mary to protect all refugees since they themselves were refugees in Egypt.
