Continued 👇🏾
Rebels Who Pursue Righteousness
To be persecuted for righteousness is to walk with Christ, but to pursue righteousness falsely is to join in the sin of Herod. Such people pretend to love the truth, yet they harm the servants of God and act from pride and self-will.
The story of this month reminds us of three such examples: Herod, who persecuted Christ for fear of losing his throne; Herod’s soldiers, who obeyed evil without conscience; and Kotiba and her family, who judged and mocked the Holy Virgin in her suffering.
Let us not imitate them, but rather the saints who endured persecution with faith and humility. For only those who suffer for righteousness shall inherit the kingdom of heaven.
V. The Lessons from Herod and His Agents
The Holy Scriptures provide examples of persecution that reveal the hearts of the wicked and the consequences of opposing God’s truth:
The Three Persecutors of Righteousness
1. Herod — The Image of Earthly Pride
Herod stands as the image of all earthly rulers who persecute the truth for the sake of their own fading glory. His heart was blinded by envy and his mind darkened by the desire for power. Instead of rejoicing at the birth of the True King, he trembled in fear that his throne would fall.
Such are those even in our times, who for the sake of worldly honor or religious position oppose the servants of God. They falsely accuse, divide the faithful, and separate saints and true believers from the Church, all in the name of authority. These are the Herodians of our generation those who love the robe and the title more than righteousness, who prefer the praise of men over the truth of God. Their end, unless they repent, shall be worse than Herod’s.
2. Herod’s Soldiers — Servants of False Glory
Herod’s soldiers are enemies of the truth, for they cannot distinguish between truth and falsehood. They do not follow the voice of their own conscience but obey the corrupt will of others. When our Lady, the Virgin Mary, was exiled with the Lord Jesus, these soldiers pursued and persecuted her in the desert.
They did not act out of understanding or faith, but out of ambition seeking positions, rewards, and favor. They filled the impure desires of Herod, whom they treated as if he were a god, and they enslaved their conscience for the sake of profit and temporary glory. Their obedience was not righteousness but fear; their service was not loyalty to God but to the vanity of man.
When they tormented the Mother of God in the desert and caused her to thirst. As recorded in the Miracle of Mary, our merciful Lord brought forth a pure spring of water for His Mother, for Joseph, and for Salome, in the midst of the wilderness. This spring was sweet and refreshing for the righteous yet when the persecutors approached to drink, it became bitter and undrinkable to them.
So too will it be for all who persecute the truth: what is life to the righteous becomes judgment to the wicked. A far worse punishment awaits them in the eternal fire of hell.
Therefore, those who falsely claim to serve God who use His holy ministry for personal gain, wealth, or fame are likened to Herod’s soldiers. They persecute the true servants of God for the favor of earthly powers. Their end will be worse than that of Herod’s soldiers, for they corrupt both the body and the soul by selling the truth for vanity.
Continues 👇🏾