Overview
- The Catholic Church observes the date to honor the children killed under King Herod as described in the Gospel of Matthew.
- In 2025 the commemoration falls on Sunday, December 28.
- The remembrance entered the liturgical calendar by at least the fourth century and later absorbed medieval role‑reversal customs such as the Feast of Fools.
- In Spain, Mexico and other Spanish‑speaking countries it now also features light‑hearted pranks, with the “inocente” understood as the person who is fooled.
- Scholarly accounts note the massacre’s exact date is uncertain, with some estimates placing it within two years of Jesus’ birth between 4 and 2 B.C.