---
title: "The Holy Innocents: Feast Day December 28 · Bless"
url: https://blessbible.app/saints/the-holy-innocents/
description: "The Holy Innocents, Martyrs. Feast day December 28. Read their life in Bless."
---

Martyrs · Feast day December 28

# The Holy Innocents

The feast day of The Holy Innocents is December 28, a feast in the US Catholic calendar.

|  |  |
|---|---|
| Feast day | [December 28](https://blessbible.app/saints/december/#28) |
| In the US calendar | Feast |
| Title | Martyrs |
| Next on Bless’s Today screen | [Monday, December 28, 2026](https://blessbible.app/saints/the-holy-innocents/#calendar) |

## Life

The boy children of Bethlehem, two years old and under, killed by Herod in his terror of a newborn King — the first blood shed for Christ, though they never knew his name.

Rachel wept for her children, as Jeremiah had foreseen; the Church from earliest times has counted them martyrs not in word but in deed, flowers of martyrdom cut down at the root. Their feast falls in Christmas week, a dark jewel in the octave of joy.

## In the calendar

The upcoming dates, through December 31, 2028, when Bless’s Today screen shows The Holy Innocents. Where the US calendar keeps another celebration that day, it is named instead and no rank is given.

| Date | In the US calendar | Color | Mass readings (US) |
|---|---|---|---|
| [Monday, December 28, 2026](https://blessbible.app/calendar/2026/12/28/) | Holy Innocents, Martyrs (Feast) | Red | 1 John 1:5—2:2 · Psalm 124:2-3, 4-5, 7cd-8 · Matthew 2:13-18 |
| [Tuesday, December 28, 2027](https://blessbible.app/calendar/2027/12/28/) | Holy Innocents, Martyrs (Feast) | Red | 1 John 1:5—2:2 · Psalm 124:2-3, 4-5, 7cd-8 · Matthew 2:13-18 |
| [Thursday, December 28, 2028](https://blessbible.app/calendar/2028/12/28/) | Holy Innocents, Martyrs (Feast) | Red | 1 John 1:5—2:2 · Psalm 124:2-3, 4-5, 7cd-8 · Matthew 2:13-18 |

Readings

Reading citations through May 31, 2027 are as published in the USCCB liturgical calendar. Later citations were computed by Bless from the US Lectionary cycle — confirm with your parish.

[December 27 St. John the Apostle](https://blessbible.app/saints/st-john-the-apostle/) [December 29 St. Thomas Becket](https://blessbible.app/saints/st-thomas-becket/)

[All the saints of December](https://blessbible.app/saints/december/) [Born on December 28?](https://blessbible.app/saints/birthday/#12-28) [A saint for every day](https://blessbible.app/saints/)

Spotted a mistake in a date, a patronage or a quotation? [Report an error](https://blessbible.app/support/#report) and we’ll fix it in the app and here.

The Holy Innocents

Feast day December 28

On this page

1. [Life](https://blessbible.app/saints/the-holy-innocents/#life)
2. [In the calendar](https://blessbible.app/saints/the-holy-innocents/#calendar)

In the app

Bless shows a saint every day on its Today screen, with their life and their words. Free on iPhone.