by Fr. Tommy Lane
For the past number of months, people have questions about good and evil, sparked by the current pandemic (Covid-19). The battle between good and evil has been ongoing. We see it in the garden of Eden, in the battle, we might say, between the serpent and Adam and Eve (Gen 3), and we see it in the Gospel today between Herod and Jesus (Matt 2:1-12).
Herod did not grow up in Judea but in neighboring Idumea and most believe he was not a Jew. He was highly ambitious and made a visit to the Roman Emperor to curry favor with him. It worked; he was given rulership over Palestine and the title King of the Jews, which to me looks something like an honorary title. Then when he went to Palestine after his trip to Rome, he had to get rid of the current ruler in Palestine which he did by sending him away for execution. He had one of his wives killed and her parents and two of his sons, and since he did not eat pork out of respect for his Jewish subjects, the Roman Emperor is reported to have said, “it is better to be Herod’s pig than Herod’s son.” In today’s Gospel, we see Herod plotting against Jesus, using the unsuspecting wise men, and hoping to find out from them the whereabouts of Jesus. Herod’s trick did not work because divine intervention sent the wise men home a different way so then Herod became even more devious as he had all young boys in the neighborhood killed (Matt 2:16). We call them the Holy Innocents and celebrate their feast every year on December 28.
Although Herod tried very hard to do away with Jesus, he did not succeed. In the account of Herod in Matt 2, we see heaven intervening three times to block Herod’s evil plans. The first was when the wise men were warned to go home a different way, the second was when Joseph was told to take Jesus and Mary to Egypt for safety, and a third time when Joseph was told Herod had died. Herod did not succeed in his evil intentions. In the midst of all this upheaval, Mary and Joseph would have known to trust in God; Mary and Joseph had been visited by an angel before Jesus was born. As they made their way to Bethlehem for the registration, they must have been aware of the passage in the Prophet Micah 5 quoted in our Gospel today:
And you, Bethlehem, in the
land of Judah,
you are by no means the
least among the leaders of Judah,
for from you will come a
leader
who will shepherd my people
Israel (Matt 2:6)
Mary and Joseph would have seen that the timing of the registration was perfect to have them in Bethlehem at the time of Jesus’ delivery. Although inconvenient, everything was working out according to God’s plan. They would have known to trust in God because in the end, evil will not win or succeed. This is a constant message in Sacred Scripture. God will win the victory. So, when we have questions about good and evil, it is good to remember that no matter what, God will win the victory over evil. We see this many times in the Gospels; we see Jesus winning the victory over Satan during his fast in the desert and every time he cast out demons and cured diseases. Satan was very active at the time of Jesus’ passion and death, but we see Jesus winning the victory at the time of his resurrection.
Throughout history since Jesus, again and again we see God winning the victory. We see the battle between good and evil in Nazi concentration camps of World War II. Most of the Catholic priests detained were sent to the concentration camp in Dachau in the heart of Bavaria near Munich. There were 2,579 Catholic priests, bishops, monks, and seminarians imprisoned in that camp from 1938-1945 and 141 of other denominations. There were thirty barracks in that camp and always two of those barracks were occupied by Catholic priests, and sometimes a third. In the book, The Priest Barracks: Dachau, 1938-1945, we read,
Never in the course of history, even in the worst hours of the French Reign of Terror or Communist persecution, have so many priests, monks, and seminarians been murdered in such a small area: 1,034 gave up their lives. (p13)
Yet we also see evil being overcome. In the same book we read,
Many priests in Dachau were firmly convinced that they were still being accompanied by God in the midst of their suffering; this allowed some to display a sort of confidence, if not serenity. (p240)
A seminarian was secretly ordained a priest by one of the imprisoned bishops (Chapter 16. By my count, there were at least 5 imprisoned bishops.) Above all, we see the victory of good over evil in that
Fifty-six men of the Church who died in Dachau have been beatified, following a process proving that they practiced the natural and Christian virtues in an exemplary or heroic fashion, and after a miracle was obtained thanks to their intercession. (p241)
And the story does not end there because the causes for the beatification of more of those imprisoned priests are being studied so the number of fifty-six Blesseds is likely to rise even further.
We see the battle between good and evil in the Gospel today between Herod and Jesus, but Mary and Joseph would have known to trust in God. They must have been aware of the passage in the Prophet Micah 5 quoted in our Gospel today that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem and would have seen the timing of the registration was perfect to have them in Bethlehem at the time of Jesus’ delivery. The battle between good and evil continued in the life of Jesus until his resurrection and continues in history since then. But we take courage because we already know the outcome; no matter what the circumstances now, we know God will win.
© Fr. Tommy Lane 2021
This homily was delivered in a parish in Ireland.
More Homilies for January 6: Epiphany of Our Lord
The gift of our love for Jesus 2020
The events of the Epiphany played out today 2013
Jesus’ birth revealed to the nations by a star because Jesus is Savior of all 2007
From star reading, horoscopes, and astrology to worshiping Jesus
Baby Jesus, the Wise Men and Herod (also in mp3 meditation reduced quality)
stories for Christmas