my heart is torn: I will not be silent. I suffer these things for the sake of the Virgin Mary who knew no man, and for the sake of the Word lying in the manger. I see the clusters, budding in the spirit and not yet ripening, snuffed out. Woe is me, woe is me! Those whom nature bore with labor after nine months, I see these prematurely slaughtered by the blow of the sword. Woe is me, O Virgin Mary, at once mother and one who did not know man, yet bore a son; you have not known the sorrow of mothers: for if you had known it, surely you would weep. You carried without pain; you gave birth without labor; you received the Word of heaven as a guest in your home without pain; you sent forth the celestial flower to the world without labor. But at last draw near, and weep no more, but make an end of mourning, Rachel. Herod slew your infants on earth, but God nourishes them in heaven: Herod deprived your children of temporal light, but He shall fill them in heaven with His own light. You do not see them leaping on earth; but then you shall see and rejoice, seeing them as lambs leaping in paradise. Now you grieve, not seeing them extending their hands at the table; but then you shall see and rejoice, seeing them eating the celestial bread with the angels: now you grieve, not seeing them singing; but then, rejoicing, you shall see this chorus of infants, like spring swallows, celebrating Christ in paradise. For since the prophet said, "Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise" (Ps. VIII, 3), the chorus of infants forestalled him, preparing triumphal hymns for Christ, fulfilling that word of the prophet: "Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise." But this, beloved, we have said for the delight of praise; let us now turn to the path of the Gospel. "Hearing," he says, "Herod was troubled" (Matt. II, 3). A Observe, beloved, the devil troubled in Herod, and that indeed vehemently. The wolf sees the shepherd born, and himself hidden in a manger, and holding the firm staff of the Spirit in his hands, and seeing this he is troubled vehemently. The dragon sees the bait of the body and the infant crawling like a worm; "For I am a worm, and no man" (Ps. XXI, 7); and he rushes with gaping mouth; and he sees within the celestial Word in the flesh, like a hook hidden, and having seen this he is troubled vehemently. He sees the grain of mustard coming into the earth, and sending forth branches of hope, which would shelter the race of men under the leaves of salvation; and the hater of good, the devil, seeing this, is greatly perturbed. He sees Wisdom having come to earth, and having taken a little leaven of the body, and having mixed it into the three parts of the flour, in soul, in body, and in spirit, so that through it the whole human race might be leavened in the one salvation of faith; and having observed this thing he is troubled vehemently. He sees the legion of the demon expelled from the human race and sent into the abyss, and seeing this he is troubled greatly. He sees the gates of hell broken, and Adam led back into paradise, and he is troubled vehemently. He sees again Eve saved through Mary, and the serpent in whom he most trusted killed; and seeing these things, he is a vehement troubler. He sees the tree of life planted, and seeing this he is troubled greatly. Time would fail me, beloved, to recount the perturbation of the devil. Finally, when the devil could do nothing against the Lord, he runs to the infants and tender children. And whom does he slay? From two years old and under; those however who had reached three years old he did not kill. For those are infants who confess the dyad, or two persons, and do not believe in the Trinity. Wherefore this Rachel, that is, the Church from the Gentiles, laments this, so that her voice is heard in Rama, that is, in the high place: for thus Rama is interpreted, high, the heavenly Jerusalem before the Most High God, to whom is due all glory, honor, and power with the most holy and life-giving Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen.
On Herod and the Infants
I would indeed always and everywhere have a spiritual discourse, obeying Paul who says: "Comparing spiritual things with spiritual" (I Cor. II, 13); especially since I am a debtor from the previous Lord's day which bears the name of the Lord. I know not how it always happens to me that my poverty never pays its debts, while you, insatiable in spiritual matters, always demand the debt with interest. Yet I do not grieve, O friends, but rather exult; for I am a servant hoping to become rich. Therefore I do not ask for pardon, but for a respite. For God is present who supplies speech and says: "Open thy mouth, and I will fill it" (Ps. LXXX, 14); not because of the dignity of the speaker, but because of the pious desire of the listeners. You heard therefore the evangelist Matthew saying: "And when Herod the king saw that he was mocked by the wise men, he was exceeding wroth; and sent forth and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men" (Matt. II, 16). These are the events at the birth of Christ according to the flesh. Hear, however, from how long before this had been predicted. "That it might be fulfilled," he says, "the word which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying: A voice was heard in Rama, Rachel weeping for her children" (Ibid. v. 17-18). Do you see how many generations before the madness of Herod in the last times was announced? "Sending forth," he says, "he slew all the children that were in Bethlehem and in all the coasts thereof." O the madness of Herod, or rather the wickedness of the devil! For this was his work; he himself armed Herod against the children. But he stirred up the sword against himself, with which he slew the children: for although Herod attempted many things, he did not slay Jesus, as he hoped. The vain effort of Herod was the ruin of the devil. "Seeing," he says, "that he was mocked by the wise men, he was exceeding wroth; and sent forth and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof." O Herod, why art thou rashly angry? Why dost thou take up arms against infants? B Thou wert mocked by the wise men, and thou slaughterest infants? Did the infants lead the wise men? The star indicated the Lord born to them. Since therefore thou canst not shoot against the star, dost thou slaughter infants? Didst thou receive the kingdom for this, that thou mightest show force against those who are doing nothing? Dost thou fight with infants, Herod? Dost thou make mothers bereaved, dost thou dry up breasts? Dost thou strip arms? Dost thou pierce bowels? Dost thou multiply laments for women bringing forth? Wilt thou slay infants from two years old and under? Thou hast where thou mayest fix the sword. This is not to kill, but to pierce prematurely. Show the sword to the infants: if they fear, kill, slaughter; if they approach the sword gladly, why dost thou apply the sword to those who laugh at the sword? Dost thou think, Herod, that thou art going to reach the Savior and slay him himself? But since thou hast decreed this entirely, send forth a decree, summon the wise men, stop the star, watch for Gabriel, judge the prophets, seek the Virgin mother: if thou attainest these things, then thou shalt be able to find Christ. Dost thou not bring glory, but seek him who was born without flux? Dost thou fight with God, O king? Thou who art ruling, dost thou inquire curiously? Dost thou wish to hold him who holds thee? Dost thou wish to destroy him who desires thy salvation? Dost thou wish to comprehend him deceitfully who is present to thee, and because of thy wickedness does not want to be seen by thee? This is he, O Herod, who for a long time now cries out: "The wicked shall seek me, and shall not find me." Dost thou despise him as an infant? He is far more ancient than Abraham according to his divinity; and not only more ancient than Abraham, but he is also the creator of Adam. He is not surrounded by fear, but he enters into the economy of salvation. Why therefore, Herod, art thou rashly angry? The profit of untimely anger is ruin. Why did he attempt similar things to Pharaoh? He ordered the males of the Hebrews to be cast into the river in Egypt, and thou commandest the male infants of the Jews to be slain in Bethlehem. O equal mind! Similar inhumanity! O equal wickedness! Nay rather, C
and, to speak more truly, Herod was far more ferocious than Pharaoh. Likewise, the executioners of Herod are far more cruel than those of Pharaoh. For Pharaoh had commanded that the male infants of the Jews be killed; certainly, when he was being attacked by a foreigner, fearing that he might prevail over the Israelites and devastate Egypt. He slaughtered the children of the Israelites, A so that he might save the Egyptians. But Herod, he murders the infants for fear, not out of envy. For Pharaoh, after he had found Moses afloat in the chest, and his daughter had taken him in, not only did he not kill him, but he even reared him as a son, for the sake of the infant breaking his own decree. What say you, Herod? Pharaoh saves Moses, and do you intend to pursue the Lord Christ? He preserves the one who is to scourge Egypt, and do you wish to murder the One who saves the world? Thus again, the bodyguards of the servants of Herod B are more venerable than those of Pharaoh. For the midwives, having been commanded at the very birth of the infants to drown the males of the Hebrews, did not pursue this, being God-fearing, and this even though they were Egyptian by birth. For their bowels were stirred within, knowing what mothers of male infants suffer when deprived of them by violent death. They chose rather to offend against the temporal king than to oppose the greater King and God. But Herod exhibited his malice not against another nation, but against his own countrymen he contrived his madness. C And Pharaoh, indeed, revealed such wrath in Egypt, and went no further. But Herod, not only in Bethlehem, but in all its borders, commanded that the infants be mown down. O that unjust decree, of that which then fell suddenly upon city, and village, and field, and street! There was nowhere for the mothers to hide their children; for they could not endure to keep them apart from their maternal arms. And if ever a mother, forgetting, sought to hide her own child, that child betrayed her by its weeping, drawing death to itself by its love for the breast. For just as a fish cannot bear to live outside of water, so also an infant, being deprived of its mother's breasts, D does not long escape destruction. O, that universal lamentation! I find not how to describe the forms of the mothers' wailing. If a barbarian incursion had occurred, the mothers would have borne the pain more easily; for a calamity that is shared knows how to bite the sufferer more moderately. It was not a barbarian incursion, but a civil war; it was violence having no entreaty, it was lawlessness having law as its advocate. The mothers were crying out, and there was no one to hear; the infants were wailing in turn, and no one was there to have pity; the breasts were pouring milk upon the ground, and Herod was hardened rather like a stone. The bodyguards of the king were more ferocious; in various ways they pursued the infants; some of them tearing them against the walls, others dashing them upon the stones, and others leaving them to be choked to death. For the taskmaster, the devil, was stirring them up for such a drama as this. On account of these things and similar ones, the mothers were failing, and drunk in their suffering, they did not care for appearances. They tore their tunics, they scattered their locks into the air, they exposed their breasts that deserved to be hidden, they struck their chests with stones, they lacerated their cheeks like executioners, they witnessed against the heaven as a silent judge, they made an entreaty to the Judge and Master of all, saying: "What is this great cruelty of the king, Master? He carries out his deeds upon Your creations; You created, he does not cease slaughtering; You gave grace, he inflicts harm. And why did we bear males, if the death of the infants is so bitter? If this is Your decree, command us ourselves to perish along with them; but if this is the undertaking and command of the lawless king, why do You not pursue him more quickly?" But it is likely that the mothers, bitten by their suffering, cried out these things, not knowing what is beneficial for their own fledglings. But what is more blessed than those who are plotted against for the sake of the Lord Christ? What is more blessed than these children, because they were not slaughtered only of themselves, but as Christ Himself was being murdered?