Jesus the refugee
Matthew 2:13-18
13 Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.’ 14 Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, 15 and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, ‘Out of Egypt I have called my son.’
16 When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men. 17 Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:
18 ‘A voice was heard in Ramah,
wailing and loud lamentation,
Rachel weeping for her children;
she refused to be consoled, because they are no more.’
The text opens with a reminder that Jesus along with Mary and Joseph became refugees. As a refugee Jesus walks with refugees for he understands what it is to be displaced, being forced to flee for one’s life from powerful and destructive people and systems.
Dec. 28 is the Feast of the Holy Innocents – a day that reminds us of the victims of King Herod’s murderous paranoia in killing all male infants under the age of 2 who lived in Bethlehem and the surrounding area. It is a day to remember that children are frequently the innocent victims of adult conflicts like wars and other forms of violence.
As we approach the end of the year, we look back at 2023 and remember the children who died at the hands of murderous adults. We weep for children killed in Ukraine, at the hands of Hamas, in Gaza, in Sudan, in Yemen, in school shootings, and on the list goes. We weep for the children who die of malnutrition and inadequate medical care, which result from adult greed and unwillingness to share.
Dr. Cindy Blackstock, an Officer of the Order of Canada, says it is a basic human right and responsibility that adults care for and protect children, be those children we are related to or not. Maybe a new year’s resolution could be that we who are adults would care for and protect children in 2024. May the day of remembering the holy innocents become fuel to our becoming agents of care and protection for children.
PRAYER:
We pray for the refugees of our world, O Lord, in particular for children who live in refugee camps, who live as displaced people. We pray for children who live in places of danger and risk. Cause the adults of this world to put their goals and agendas second to the call and responsibility of caring and protecting children. In Jesus’ name. Amen.