Saint Thomas Becket: Freedom Over Favor
The Feast of the Holy Innocents, Martyrs is celebrated on December 28 in the Western Church, completing the Christmas octave by commemorating the infant boys slaughtered by King Herod in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:16-18), in his attempt to kill the newborn Jesus.
These children, traditionally estimated at 14,000 in Eastern tradition (though likely fewer historically), are honored as the first martyrs—dying not by choice but in place of Christ. Their feast underscores the cost of the Incarnation: joy mingled with sorrow, and the innocence destroyed by worldly power.
Leadership Lessons for Catholic Leaders
As St. Augustine said, they are “buds, killed by the frost of persecution the moment they showed themselves.” Today, they are patrons against abortion and of babies/children.
