The Fourth Day of Christmas

The fourth day of Christmas is the Feast of the Holy Innocents. We remember the state-sponsored genocide that took place in Bethlehem as Herod tried to eliminate Jesus.

Song: The Winter Sun Was Setting

Scripture: Matthew 2:13-18

Devotion: 

Within two years of Jesus' birth there was a genocide in his town. The government ordered troops in to kill any male child under the age of two. Mary, Joseph, and Jesus were warned to leave in a dream, and safely escaped to Egypt, but many mothers were left mourning for their sons. Read through the lyrics of the song. Reflect on what these mothers must have felt.

Genocide is not an outdated tactic used by militaries around the world. Rwandan genocide. Nazi Germany genocide. The Nanking Massacre. Bosnian genocide. These are all genocides that happened within the last 100 years. Genocides create refugees and asylum seekers as people flee from persecution and death. We can't look at the Christmas story without coming face to face with refugees. 

What would it have been like if Mary, Joseph, and Jesus sought refugee in recent times? Would Jesus have been a child separated from His parents, who were sent back to their homeland? Would Jesus have been one of the 650+ children who were unable to be reunited with their parents because the government lost track of them? Would Jesus have been sent to "Remain in Mexico" until His court date approached? Would Jesus have been sent on alone to the US border as an unaccompanied minor, only to be sent back across the border due to the pandemic? Would Jesus have been held in overcrowded cages, being fed crackers, juice, and frozen meals? Would an older child have taken Jesus under their wing as He was a two-year-old separated from His parents? Some people might point out that this has been going on for more than one administration, but bringing up additional past wrongs does not turn a present wrong into a right. 

What is my point in this? The way that we treat refugees and asylum seekers matters.  God commands clearly throughout Scripture that we are to welcome and care for the stranger, foreigner, and fatherless. Jesus says that how we treat the "least of these" (to borrow from the parable of the sheep and the goats in Matthew 25), is how we treat Him. It's easier to claim that we would have helped someone in the past than to actually help someone in the present. There are refugees in many of our communities. We can support their businesses, welcome them, and befriend them.

An amazing book to read is Christmas Is Not Your Birthday by Mike Slaughter. He highlights his church's journey towards making Christmas a time to help refugees as we remember that Jesus was once a person seeking refuge. If Christmas is merely a time when we give gifts to those we love, as we ignore those on the margins of society, I think we are missing the point. Jesus didn't come just for the people who looked like Him or who loved Him, but He came for everyone and calls us to follow Him.

Challenge: 

Pray for refugees. Donate to an organization or charity that serves refugees. Find and support a refugee-run business in your community. Speak out against unjust government treatment of refugees.