Martyr1st century

14 000 Holy Innocents

Also known as The Infants slain by Herod at Bethlehem

The children killed by King Herod in his attempt to destroy the newborn Christ.

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Commemorated as

The Holy 14,000 Innocents Slain by Herod at Bethlehem

Come to them for

Children

Life

The Holy Innocents are the male children of Bethlehem and its surrounding region whom King Herod ordered killed in his attempt to destroy the newborn Christ. By tradition the Orthodox Church numbers them at 14,000 and venerates them as the first martyrs for Christ, commemorating them on December 29, within the festal season of the Nativity.

According to the account, Magi from the East followed a star foretelling the birth of the King of the Jews and came seeking the Child. Herod, troubled by the prospect of a rival, directed them to report back to him; but, warned by God in a dream, the Magi returned to their own country by another way without informing him. Finding himself deceived, Herod ordered the killing of all the male children two years old and younger in Bethlehem and its surroundings, reasoning that the Child he feared would be among them.

The children, though they died without preaching or confession, are honored as martyrs because they suffered death on Christ's account. Orthodox tradition speaks of them as baptized in the blood of their own martyrdom. Their commemoration falls among the days that follow the feast of the Nativity, joining the newborn Christ to the first to die for him.

Customs & Traditions

The infants of Bethlehem slain by Herod, honored as among the first martyrs for Christ; their relics are venerated, and their day within the Nativity's joy has become an occasion of prayer for children.

Kontakion & Troparion2 hymnsReadHide

KontakionTone 6

When the King was born in Bethlehem, the Magi came from the east.
Having been guided by the star on high, they brought Him gifts.
But in his exceeding wrath, Herod mowed down the infants as wheat;
lamenting that the rule of his kingdom had come to an end.

Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).

TroparionTone 1

As acceptable victims and freshly plucked flowers,
as divine first-fruits and newborn lambs,
you were offered to Christ who was born as a child, holy innocents.
You mocked Herod’s wickedness;
now we beseech you:
“Unceasingly pray for our souls.”

Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).

Contributions & Legacy

2 contributionsReadHide

Herod and the Massacre

The synaxarion presents the massacre as the act of a tyrant consumed by fear for his throne. Herod the Great, learning from the Magi that a King had been born, and then finding that they had not returned to disclose the Child's whereabouts, resolved to eliminate any possible rival by killing all the male infants of the area. The tradition relates that Herod was afterward struck down by a grievous disease and died, his body consumed by worms while he yet lived, having in his final period also put to death numerous officials and members of his own household.

Relics and Commemoration

A cave traditionally identified as the resting place of the Innocents lies beneath the Basilica of the Nativity in Bethlehem, beside the belfry, and is said to hold the bones and skulls of the children; the same cave is reported to contain the remains of Christians killed in the Persian sack of 614. Relics of the Innocents are also venerated at the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, at the Church of Saint James in Constantinople, and at the Pantokrator Monastery on Mount Athos. In the Constantinopolitan tradition the Synaxis in their honor was held at the church of the Most Holy Theotokos in Chalcoprateia.

Companions1 figureShowHide

Commemorated the same day, December 29, within the Afterfeast of the Nativity, alongside these first martyrs.

All Orthodox Christians martyred by hungerthirst, freezing, and the sword

Related Saints1 saintShowHide

Saints connected to his life, mission, and place in Orthodox tradition.

The newborn King whom Herod sought to destroy; the Innocents died in his place and are honored as the first to suffer death for his sake.

Jesus Christ

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Sources: OCA Synaxarion (oca.org), Lives of the Saints