'Let us allow ourselves to be challenged by those children who are not allowed to be born . . .' Pope Francis

The Massacre of the Innocents, Pieter Bruegel the Elder 

[Web Gallery of Art]

28 December, Feast of the Holy Innocents, martyrs

Let us allow the Child in the manger to challenge us, but let us also be challenged by all those children in today’s world who are lying not in a crib, caressed with affection by their mothers and fathers, but in squalid 'mangers that devour dignity'. Children who hide underground to escape bombardment, on the pavements of large cities, in the hold of a boat overladen with immigrants… Let us allow ourselves to be challenged by those children who are not allowed to be born, by those who cry because no one relieves their hunger, by those who hold in their hands not toys, but weapons. (Pope Francis, Homily, 24 December 2016). [Emphasis added]

TORONTO, December 23, 2016 (LifeSiteNews) — Pro-life prisoner of conscience Mary Wagner will be in jail for Christmas following her arrest December 12 while attempting to save unborn children and their mothers from the violence of abortion.

Wagner, 42, was arrested at the Bloor West Village Women’s Clinic and charged with breach of probation and mischief.

A devout Catholic, Wagner does not agree to bail conditions requiring her to stay away from abortion facilities, so remains in custody until her trial and conviction.

Sister Immolatia of the Fraternity of the Poor of Jesus Christ, a fraternity founded fifteen years ago in Portugal and which ministers to the homeless and those in prison, witnessed Wagner’s arrest.

“My response to expressions of distress about her arrest is that the radical, subversive love that Mary is living, the personal sacrifice and hardship, are necessary,” Sister Immolatia wrote in a reflection on the day’s events.

Read the full report here.

Adoration of the Shepherds, Caravaggio [Web Gallery of Art]

May we too be challenged and called by Jesus. Let us approach him with trust, starting from all those things that make us feel marginalized, from our limitations and our sins. Let us be touched by the tenderness that saves. Let us draw close to God who draws close to us. Let us pause to gaze upon the crib, and relive in our imagination the birth of Jesus: light and peace, dire poverty and rejection. With the shepherds, let us enter into the real Christmas, bringing to Jesus all that we are, our alienation, our unhealed wounds, our sins. Then, in Jesus, we will enjoy the taste of the true spirit of Christmas: the beauty of being loved by God. With Mary and Joseph, let us pause before the manger, before Jesus who is born as bread for my life. Contemplating his humble and infinite love, let us simply tell him: Thank you. Thank you because you have done all this for me. (Pope Francis, Homily, 24 December 2016). [Emphasis added]

Read more about Mary Wagner and another courageous Canadian pro-life activist, Linda Gibbons, who has also spent much time in jail, here.

'Rachel weeping for her children'. The Holy Innocents, 28 December

The Flight into Egypt, Adam Elsheimer, c.1605 (Web Gallery of Art)

Gospel. Matthew 2:13-18 (Revised Standard Version – Catholic Edition)

Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there till I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him." And he rose and took the child and his mother by night, and departed to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, "Out of Egypt have I called my son." Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, was in a furious rage, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time which he had ascertained from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah: "A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled, because they were no more."

The Coventry Carol

From Wikipedia:

The only manuscript copy to have survived into recent times was burnt in 1875. Our knowledge of the lyrics is therefore based on two very poor quality transcriptions from the early nineteenth century, and there is considerable doubt about many of the words. Some of the transcribed words are difficult to make sense of: for example, in the last verse "And ever morne and may For thi parting Neither say nor singe" is not clear. Various modern editors have made different attempts to make sense of the words, so such variations may be found as "ever mourn and say", "every morn and day", "ever mourn and sigh". The following is one attempted reconstruction. [These are the lyrics used in the video above.]

Lully, lullay, Thou little tiny Child,

Bye, bye, lully, lullay.

Lullay, thou little tiny Child,

Bye, bye, lully, lullay.

O sisters too, how may we do,

For to preserve this day

This poor youngling for whom we do sing

Bye, bye, lully, lullay.

Herod, the king, in his raging,

Charged he hath this day

His men of might, in his own sight,

All young children to slay.

That woe is me, poor Child for Thee!

And ever mourn and sigh,

For thy parting neither say nor sing,

Bye, bye, lully, lullay.

Rachel's Vineyard

I took part in a Rachel's Vineyard retreat in Ireland more than a year ago. I was a participant, not a member of the team. Those leading the retreat and helping in various ways and those making it, apart from the team priest and myself, had all been directly affected by abortion, as mothers and fathers of children they would never see.  

There was a quiet sense of joy and moments of humour during the weekend. There was deep respect for each one present and no pressure on anyone to share more than he or she wanted to.

Here in the Philippines, where abortion is illegal, Pro-Life Philippines estimates that there may be as many as 750,000 induced abortions per year. The population is estimated to be around 90 million. The Guttmacher Institute in the USA, which could not be described as being 'pro-life' but whose research is, I think, reliable, estimates that in 2000 there were anywhere between 394,500 and 552,300 induced abortions.

Individuals in the Philippines rarely speak about their experience of abortion. There is an urgent need for ministries such as Rachel's Vineyard. 

How to start?

Massacre of the Innocents, Givoanni Angelo del Maino, c. 1520 

(Web Gallery of Art)