“Medea” by Artemisia Gentileschi (c. 1620), Private Collection, Source https://www.conceptualfinearts.com, Author Stephano Pirovano (CC BY-SA 4.0 International)
WARNING: Graphic Images
In Greek mythology, Medea infamously kills her children in order to hurt her unfaithful husband Jason [1][2]. The play by that name was first produced in 431 BC, and has more recently been viewed through a feminist lens [3A].
But child murders are not a thing of the past, and not limited to the stage.
Partner Revenge
“Filicide” is the deliberate killing of a son or daughter for any reason [4A]. A special category of filicide involves the killing of one’s children as revenge on a partner or spouse [5]. Often, such murders are occasioned by infidelity or suspected infidelity.
Those who murder their children out of a desire to harm the other parent view children as mere objects, the means to an end [4B][6A]. Mothers are more likely to kill children during infancy; fathers, more likely to kill children aged 8 y.o. and above [4C].
Clearly, these parents consider rage toward their partners sufficient justification for the murder of innocent and helpless victims. This is a strategy calculated to inflict maximum suffering on the partner, in effect, to destroy him or her emotionally.
Disordered Motivation
Some psychologists attribute such heinous behavior to “disordered motivation” toward children’s welfare — a mental illness triggered by hatred and the desire for revenge [6B]. A further component is said to be lack of empathy for the child victims [6C].
This analysis is more descriptive than explanatory.
Morality
“The fact that Euripides’ Medea speaks about women’s oppression and kills her children to hurt her husband does not make her a feminist.”
–Theater critic, Margherita Laera [3B]
Hatred and revenge are not psychological disorders. They are sins [7][8].
Nor is the murder of her children by a woman a feminist act of self-affirmation. It cannot be justified or rationalized. It must not be glorified.
“They even sacrificed their sons And their daughters to demons, And shed innocent blood, The blood of their sons and daughters…Thus they were defiled by their own works” (Ps. 106: 37-39).
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[1] Wikipedia, “Medea”, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medea.
[2] Wikipedia, “Medea (play)”, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medea_(play).
[3A and 3B] Critical Stages/Scenes Critiques, “On Killing Children: Greek tragedies on British stages 2015” by Margherita Laera, https://www.critical-stages.org/12/on-killing-children-greek-tragedies-on-british-stages-in-2015/.
[4A, 4B, and 4C] Wikipedia, “Filicide”, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filicide.
[5] Aside from partner revenge, other motives for filicide include:
- a view that the child is somehow a hindrance;
- Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy, i.e. the poisoning of a child to support fabricated claims of illness which inflate the parent’s sense of importance;
- vindication of so called “family honor”;
- a misguided belief that this world is too cruel for the child to endure; and
- acute psychosis (the loss of contact by a parent with reality).
[6A, 6B, and 6C] ScienceDirect, Aggression and Violent Behavior Journal, Vol. 29, “Making sense of revenge spousal filicide” by Glenn Carruthers, July – August 2016, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1359178916300556.
[7] Got Questions, “What are some Bible verses about hate?”, https://www.gotquestions.org/Bible-verses-about-hate.html.
[8] Bible Study Tools, “Revenge: What Does the Bible Say and Is It Always Wrong?” by Pamela Palmer, 11/30/23, https://www.biblestudytools.com/bible-study/topical-studies/revenge-what-does-the-bible-say-and-is-it-always-wrong.html.
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ANNA WALDHERR A Voice Reclaimed, Surviving Child Abuse 
Family honor is nor very honorable at all . I have a friend whose was a social studies teacher for English speaking teens as part of his church’s ministry. He was stationed in Morocco for a while. His secretary, a woman in her early 20’s , had a Muslim father who broke both her arms with an iron frying pan because she brought a Bible into the house and he caught her reading it. Very honorable, eh ?
It is a terrible practice — highly misogynistic though women, too, engage in it. Acid Survivors Trust International (ASTI) https://www.asti.org.uk/ is one of the non-profits which serve survivors of horrific acid attacks in the name of so called “family honor”.
it’s all so heartbreaking.
“Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.” Isaiah 49:18
Liebe Anna, Du greifst oft sehr schwierige Themen auf, an die sich sonst keiner herantraut. Aber ich finde es sehr gut, dass Du über diese schrecklichen Dinge sprichst, es ist die Hoffnung, das sie in Zukunft vermieden werden können. LG Marie
Vielen Dank für deine liebevolle Unterstützung, Marie. Sie bedeutet mir sehr viel. LG, A.
This post touched me deeply, Anna. It called to my remembrance a lady who worked at the company I worked at who was going through divorce proceedings. One day while she was at work, her husband killed her two sons before turning the gun on himself. He had decided that if he couldn’t have his boys, no one would.
How can one make sense of such evil? Perhaps more importantly, how does a mother carry on in the aftermath of such tragedy? Oh how this world needs the love of God!
I knew this was a dark post, but felt compelled to write it. I agree w/ you, Ron. Such evil is, in a certain sense, incomprehensible. The world desperately needs the love of God.
One of my students’ ex-husband was in jail for killing their baby. He was watching TV and the baby was crying too loudly while mom was at work, so he grabbed the baby and threw it against the wall. I allowed her to come to class with the other two children, 3 and 5 years old at the time, since she could not bear part with them.
That’s tragic, Dolly.
It shocked me so much that at first I couldn’t believe her. Then she showed me paperwork.
Child killings by parents is a topic the Bible does not shy away from, speaking to the depth of human depravity, the depth of our need for the LORD God, our Savior. Did you happen to come across the essay in the NYTimes in the last couple of days written by the father of a little girl? He expresses “regret” over having her. I can’t imagine how hurt she will feel when she grows up and reads that. There are a hundred and one ways to “kill” a child. Here’s the link:
This is so sad, Dora. You are absolutely right. We need not kill the body, to kill the spirit.