Massacres of the innocent

In his birth stories, gospel writer Matthew

gives us the terrible tale sometimes called

The massacre of the innocents.

It seemed plausible at the time of writing;

this callously brutal act, ordered

by a despotic monarch

for the sake of preserving his kingship.

In more recent years

historians and scholars

have dared to ask the question:

did it really happen?

They point to a shortage of corroborating evidence

beyond the scriptures;

along with the Moses story,

and the need to solve

the Bethlehem – Nazareth conundrum.

Traditionalists, of which there are a few,

point to the character, or lacking,

of Herod the Great, a ruthless tyrant

who would tolerate no limitations

to his pursuit of power.

Without doubt he was capable

of ordering such a terrible deed,

as have been so many kings and rulers since.

In the last hundred years

there has also been no shortage of tyrant:

dictators who have cruelly

oppressed their own people,

tribal leaders who express their hatred

with guns and machetes,

presidents and Prime Ministers

who declare bloody, high-tech war,

on the slimmest of pretexts.

Few have dared

to directly target children,

but  these little ones have borne

more than their share of suffering.

Historical considerations aside,

it is good that this Christmas text reminds us

how the small, the innocent, the weak

and the vulnerable, have so often

paid the price demanded

by the wealthy and the strong.

And still do.

© Ken Rookes

© 2010  Ken Rookes

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