   The Smallest Martyrs
In the time of the Magi, the mothers mourned for their children who were murdered; today children mourn for their mothers who have become the murderers.
The Colosseum of pagan Rome had nothing on the blood sport made popular today: Human sacrifice in the womb!
"Yes, once again crowds of hatred gather for sport to see innocent blood spilt. Once again pathetic authority hides behind popular slogans or distorted claims to justify and consider the validity of atrocity. Once again, we are told that overall, ultimate good may be derived from inherent, naked evil. Once again those in the way of evil are eliminated and brushed away like so much lint on the coat of detestable evil. The nation, the media, the political culture, the society, the people who shed a tear and wax poetic to answer charities and aid victims of natural disaster will continue to promote, to advocate, to march for, to contribute to, to vote for, murder and murderers of the most tiny of martyrs. I usually think of an anniversary as a positive, uplifting, compelling, inspiring event. In the case of this month's upcoming anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the only thing that I am inspired to is nausea."
On this day when we celebrate the arrival of the three wiseman to the manger, we reflect on how they valued life. They were intricately involved in the advent of Herod's wrath and retaliation because they wanted to protect the Christ Child as well as all other children. By taking the back road on the advice of the angel's warning, they inadvertently opened the floodgates for Herod's abominable slaughter of the Holy Innocents. It was part of history. God allowed it for good.
So what about today when we are haunted with the fact that over 50 million have been slaughtered in what should be the safest place in the world - their mothers' wombs? God provides martyrs in order to build grace and supply the faithful with edifying, holy examples of virtue to encourage future generations to being faithful to the Lord and His Church. That is why we have saints. Let us not get into the 'saints factory' the New Order church churns out, but the saints who were so meticulously researched and assured, through miracles, that they were in Heaven. Not so in today's climate of modern saints. Yet from these modern 'saints' we can still take solace in their virtue and perseverance, yet to place the founder of Opus Dei on an equal level with the founder of the Franciscans, Dominicans and Jesuits just doesn't sound right.
Neither does it sound right that the smallest martyrs in the world, unwilling participants no less, do not even have the free will to die for God for they have yet to be born of water through the Sacrament of Baptism. But more of that later.
There are other kinds of martyrdom I would like to discuss. We have all heard about the great martyrs who gave their lives for just causes and their beliefs. These heroes were innocent yet courageous victims of the world around them who were nonetheless neither vanquished nor forgotten but instead serve as models and symbols of what living and dying for their causes and beliefs really mean. In the case of Catholic martyrs, this cause and belief centers around the Word and Will of God as exemplified in Christ and taught by our great Roman Catholic Faith, Doctrine, and Tradition. It is well known and accepted though forgotten by some that the sacrifice of such martyrs is not confined to distant coliseums or fields in pagan lands but likewise quite present in many parts of the world today where persecution and death for one's Catholic faith is very real. In fact, beyond actual physical martyrdom, we know that our nation has become a place of cultural, social, political, economic, and moral martyrdom for Catholics as well. Despite our awareness of these realities, we must never forget the smallest martyrs for a cause…..the slaughtered innocent children of abortion!
Victims of Violence and Injustice
Our martyrs have usually been victims of great violence, torture, persecution, and injustice. Their suffering and death often came in the cruelest and most horrendous forms of torture and pain. Some were pierced with swords, lances, knives, or arrows. Others were burned with boiling water, oil, or roasted on grills. Still others were torn limb from limb or ripped apart through cruel sport. Of course, many were fed to hungry animals or thrown from heights. History and tradition tell us that no form of cruelty and horror was considered too extreme when applied to these martyrs.
Targets, Symbols, or Obstacles
We also know that most martyrs were eliminated because they were targets of great hatred, disdain, and annoyance. They were symbols of detested moral standards or calls for conscience and good. They were often express or implied clarions against the evils of their day, much to the annoyance and disdain of precisely those who would prefer that their evil continue unabated and even promoted. In effect, these martyrs were obstacles to the evil goals and intents of immoral, despicable, twisted minds. They were no more than branches in the path of sin to be chopped away with the machete of evil. Just as Christ and John The Baptist were murdered because they boldly spoke the truth and dared to stand up to evil forces of their time, so too most if not all martyrs likewise became lightning rods against the evils prevalent in their day.
The Smallest Martyrs
In the tradition of those great martyrs of history, this fallen society has produced the smallest martyrs…the aborted children of God. These innocent lives have been cut short as targets of those who see them as mere obstacles to selfish, arrogant motives. They have become symbols of limitation to those who see motherhood as a curse instead of a blessing. These tiny victims are seen as chains or handcuffs to the life of carefree selfishness, materialism, hedonism, and relativist morality which The New Order advocates. Just as the fallen angels cried that they would not serve God, so too those fallen ghouls who promote this vile murder of the most innocent cry that they will not bow to moral restraints or absolute standards of conscience and good.
These smallest of martyrs daily give their lives in the battle between life and death, between good and evil, and between salvation and perdition. The society which mourns the Holocaust victims, the victims of 9/11, the victims of the present war, or the victims of the recent natural disasters is blind and deaf to the cries of these most innocent and tiny martyrs. In fact, this so-called civilized society actively murders these smallest of victims under a twisted, vile, and despicable guise and pretense of choice, freedom, and privacy. Just as the Romans turned persecution and murder of early Christians into sport, so too this society makes light of this heinous atrocity by even attempting to justify, rationalize, or explain its supposed validity. Worse yet, clueless imbeciles who pretend to be "religious leaders" tell us that Christ accompanies the woman as she murders her child, compassionate to her plight and difficult decision. It is incredible that anyone with half a cerebrum between their ears, much less anyone even claiming a shred of religious or spiritual validity or authority, would even dare to insult our intelligence with the claim that abortion is ever morally justified!
Yes, once again crowds of hatred gather for sport to see innocent blood spilt. Once again pathetic authority hides behind popular slogans or distorted claims to justify and consider the validity of atrocity. Once again, we are told that overall, ultimate good may be derived from inherent, naked evil. Once again those in the way of evil are eliminated and brushed away like so much lint on the coat of detestable evil. The nation, the media, the political culture, the society, the people who shed a tear and wax poetic to answer charities and aid victims of natural disaster will continue to promote, to advocate, to march for, to contribute to, to vote for, murder and murderers of the most tiny of martyrs. I usually think of an anniversary as a positive, uplifting, compelling, inspiring event. In the case of this month's upcoming anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the only thing that I am inspired to is nausea.
We can only pray that, like the angel who warned the Magi, the angels of conscience will visit those who promote, vote for, are complicit in or are thinking of having an abortion
and warn them to take another road, one away from the vile sin of slaughtering innocent fetuses with no chance to express free will. Responding to those angelic inner voices either in the head, heart or womb will go a long way in determining the salvific fate of those who do have free will. In the long run there is no greater treasure one can give the Christ Child, for far greater than gold, incense and myrrh is a soul that is saved.
Gabriel Garnica
Editor's Note: Heaven is once again under attack by those who would seek to ignore and overthrow God's majesty and authority. Gabriel Garnica, educator and attorney, submits regular insights and commentaries to remind and help guide readers toward a deeper and more assertive faith. Touching on topics and issues ranging from personal faith, doctrine, education, scripture, the media, family life, morality, and values, Gabriel's notes are music to traditional ears but unpleasant tones to those who have bought into the misguided notions so prevalent and spreading in today's Catholic world.
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