Sunday’s Coming

Why we should preach the innocents

For more commentary on this week's readings, see the Reflections on the Lectionary page, which includes Truax's current Living by the Word column as well as past magazine and blog content. For full-text access to all articles, subscribe to the Century.

I’ve always approached the slaughter of the innocents as a text that demands to be preached whether it’s in the lectionary year or not. Maybe that’s my privileged life talking there—that is, my life where all my children survived childhood without a serious threat. A life where weddings and baby showers are more frequent than funerals. A life where the stability of a home and regular meals were a given.

It seems particularly important to me to bring to my congregation the terror of a family fleeing their home and the inconsolable grief of parents holding their murdered children. Though it is admittedly jarring to bring these messages into our warmly decorated homes.