Martyrs The 14,000 Holy Innocents Slain by Herod in Bethlehem

The Synaxis of the Holy Innocents slain by Herod in Bethlehem is celebrated on December 29 (January 11) — in memory of the children killed on the order of the Judean king Herod the Great in and around Bethlehem shortly after the Nativity of Christ. Having learned from the Magi of the birth of the "King of the Jews" and fearing for his throne, Herod, unable to learn the exact location of the Child from the Magi, ordered the killing of all boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity two years old and under (Matt. 2:16-18), hoping thereby to destroy Christ as well, Who by then had been taken to safety in Egypt by Joseph and Mary at an angel's revelation. Church tradition, reflected in the liturgical texts of the feast, traditionally gives the number of slain infants as 14,000, though this figure is symbolic rather than strictly historical (Bethlehem's population at the time was considerably smaller). The Innocents are venerated by the Church as the first martyrs for Christ, suffering even before the start of His earthly ministry — "martyrs not by their own will, but for Christ's sake."