2000 years separate the murder scene, but the crime remains as hideous as ever, even more so. In fact, it cries to Heaven for vengeance and Almighty God shall have His day and justice. Herod had his and it was fleeting, the pro-aborts today are having theirs, but the day is coming where all will pay for their transgressions for the Triune Divinity will not be mocked.

"While the innocent blood of Bethlehem was spilt to preserve a despot's pathetic grip on a useless earthly crown, our innocent blood is spilt to preserve a pathetic grip on some useless earthly notion of lifestyle, career plans, choice, or freedom. As tragic and superficial the motives of that distant despot, the reasons today are even more superficial, pathetic, and selfish."

    This time of the year both of them are remembered, although differently, for what they have suffered. One for a cruelty inflicted long ago in a distant town. The other for a continuing cruelty inflicted every day right next door by hearts distant from The Word of God; one at the weapon of uniformed ghouls following the wishes of an insane despot - Herod; the other at the weapon of uniformed ghouls following the wishes of a confused or insane mother. One as an investment in a desperate attempt to clutch on to a pathetic crown by a temporary imbecile. The other as an investment in a desperate attempt to clutch on to a pathetic lifestyle supporting temporary, often imbecilic goals, motives, and aspirations. One ripped from his mother's loving arms and torn to shreds in bloody sacrifice to evil, selfishness, arrogance, and insecurity. The other ripped from his mother's womb and torn to shreds in bloody sacrifice to those same four gods of death.

    As the year ended we remembered the Holy Innocents, both of Bethlehem and of this age. Is it not ironic that the horrendous Roe v. Wade was set into law soon after that feast 32 years ago? Through the irony and greater design of The Creator we link each year with a tiny handshake between innocents murdered by despicable people for detestable reasons clothed in pathetic rationalizations borne of nauseating weakness mixed with arrogance, naked selfishness mixed with insecurity, and utter evil mixed with hellish motive.

Same Crime

    Despite the distance in miles and years, the crime committed daily in death mills is the same as that perpetrated in Bethlehem a shortly after Our Savior Jesus Christ was born. In both cases innocent life has been snuffed out in the most cruel and heartless way, for any such act can only be cruel and heartless in and of itself. In both cases authority is invoked as the right to kill, as if murder can ever have valid authority. In both cases a lifestyle was the justification for ending the life of an innocent child, as if lifestyle can every justify ending life. In both cases a pathetic crown has been the treasure seemingly protected by violent means, be it a kingly crown or one of social, cultural, economic, career, or personal motives. In both cases the innocent one is ripped from the apparent safety of a mother and plunged into great suffering and pain followed by death. Yes, the murders of Bethlehem that cold day were no different than the murders of abortion today, except for one key difference. While the Bethlehem innocents were dragged away against the will of their loving mothers, our innocents are willingly surrendered by their mothers today.

    While the innocent blood of Bethlehem was spilt to preserve a despot's pathetic grip on a useless earthly crown, our innocent blood is spilt to preserve a pathetic grip on some useless earthly notion of lifestyle, career plans, choice, or freedom. As tragic and superficial the motives of that distant despot, the reasons today are even more superficial, pathetic, and selfish.

Same Victims

    Despite the distance and years, the blood spilt at Bethlehem and daily in the death mills of today is one and the same. It is innocent blood which has not yet had the chance to live, to experience God's gifts, and to serve The Creator. These are the most defenseless and vulnerable of lives, totally dependent on the goodness, love, and care of adults around them. These are clearly betrayed lives, butchered by a society more concerned with its "social order", "political correctness", and "privacy" than with any notion of decency and humanity. Differences in technology, wealth, social order, language, religion, and culture mean nothing to lives equally torn apart amid oaths of self-preservation clothed as solemn claims of legitimacy! Barbarian cruelty cares not for fashion, style, excuses, or claims. It falls upon these innocents equally melting the years and the distance in a sea of violence and evil.

Same Reasons

    How low and pathetic can any claim be when it moves to enforce and protect its legitimacy by murdering innocent children? Is there any room for more arrogance and selfishness than that which embraces the cruel torture of a baby for personal motives? Can any claim or justification be validly presented which even attempts to take the murder of infants out of the depths of hell? Women abort their child to preserve a career. They abort their child to preserve a lifestyle. They abort their child because they are not ready for its impact on their lives. They abort their child because it was unplanned. They abort their child because it might have a defect. They abort their child because they were raped. They abort their child because they fell like it. Herod killed to preserve a career and lifestyle. He killed because he was not ready and had not planned on a threat to his rule. He killed because he felt such a new king would create a defect in his plans and would violate his authority. At the end of the day, Herod killed because he felt like it. The only difference is that Herod was not killing his own child. We can see that the sin has gotten worse as if that could ever seem possible to the wailing mothers of Bethlehem.

Same Criminals

    At first glance there may seem to be no similarity between a distant, ancient despot and modern feminists, doctors, liberal politicians, social radicals, and selfish women. However, the common link is the claim of legitimacy through authority. Both Herod and the present criminals claim that they can kill because the rule of law allows them to do so. Of course, we know that the rule of law can be immoral, as in Nazi Germany. We also know that authority is the moral right to do something and capacity is the ability to do something. A government or king can allow one to kill innocent children, but that never makes this murder morally acceptable. Ability need not confer moral authority. Civil authority without moral authority is a fraud. The criminal of Bethlehem and that of this society is the same. It is limitless arrogance, selfishness, cruelty, materialism, greed, hypocrisy, and depravity. It is only the puppets of this criminal which have changed.

Victims Joined

    Yes, we begin each year with an ironic pair of anniversaries. Both commemorate the murder of innocent children. One an ancient crime in an ancient place soon after the first Christmas. The other a continuing crime all around us clothed in fraudulent legitimacy soon after the Christmas of 1973. These twin anniversaries remind us that barbaric, despicable, detestable cruelty and evil transcend distance and time. They remind us that evil and sin are not new. They warn us that the murder of innocence has always existed and continues today. They point to the hypocrisy of those who claim that technology or modern society has gained any clue of what humanity and decency are all about.

    They are testament to this world's continued spiral downward in sin and perdition amid its continued boasts of control and order. While humanity wallows in its pathetic inability to stop this crime, the children of Bethlehem reach out and guide the children of abortion to a loving God where they can truly be safe from betrayal, from cruelty, from arrogance, from selfishness, from lies, and from this "civilized" society.

Gabriel's Clarion
January 15, 2005
Volume 16, no. 15