December 26--St. Stephen, Deacon and First Martyr

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On the first day of Christmas, we receive the gift of the birth of Jesus, the source of all salvation. On the second day of Christmas, we have the feast of the first martyr, St. Stephen. What we know of St. Stephen comes to us directly from the Acts of the Apostles. He was chosen as one of the seven deacons, who then served the Greek-speaking Jewish Christians in Jerusalem. But there is more to the story of St. Stephen.

He came to the attention of the Sanhedrin. He then explained the history of Israel to them and told them how Jesus fulfilled all that had been prophesied. “When they heard this, they were infuriated, and they ground their teeth at him. But he, filled with the holy Spirit, looked up intently to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and he said, ‘Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.’ But they cried out in a loud voice, covered their ears, and rushed upon him together. They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him. The witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul. As they were stoning Stephen, he called out, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’ Then he fell to his knees and cried out in a loud voice, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them’; and when he said this, he fell asleep” (Acts 7:54-60). 

The feast of St. Stephen is immediately after Christmas to show us what discipleship truly means, the sacrifice of oneself in love of God for others, namely, martyrdom. May every day remind us of our call to discipleship. St. Stephen, pray for us.

* https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/20/St_stephen.jpg  Jacopo & Domenico Tintoretto, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons