Saint Stephen the Martyr –Image: Saint a Day@Twitter
(Franciscan Media) In the last three days, the Church through its sacred Liturgy, has seen three different Liturgical colors: Violent at the end of Advent–White or even Gold in some places, as on Christmas Day, we entered into the mystery of the birth of our Savior and today Red, as we celebrate St. Stephen, the first Christian martyr, known to give his life after Jesus Christ ascended to the Father.
The birth of our Lord that we celebrated at Christmas, ultimately points to His passion and death on the Cross. The reason the Son assumed human nature was to identify with us, to live among us and to sacrifice His life for our salvation. The Son of God did not need to be born like us to have life, He had life from all eternity, thus He did not come into the world to live but to die.
It is appropriate that Saint Stephen’s martyrdom is celebrated immediately after the birth of our Lord–Saint Stephen confessed that God came among us in the flesh, lived among us, suffered, died, rose from the dead and ascended to the Father.
Celebrating martyrdom the day after Christmas, reminds us that God the Son, born of the Virgin Mary, that Little Boy in the crib of Bethlehem was born to die.
On the Feast of Saint Stephen in 2003, Blessed (now) Saint John Paul II said, “It is so meaningful the First Martyr the day after Christmas. Jesus was born in Bethlehem, gave His life for us so that we too reborn ‘from on high’ through faith and baptism, might be willing to give up our own lives for love of our brothers and sisters.”
Saint Stephen died as Jesus did, falsely accused, brought to unjust condemnation because he spoke the truth fearlessly dying with his eyes truthfully fixed on God with a prayer of forgiveness on his lips.
A ‘happy’ death is one that finds us in the same spirit, whether our dying is as quiet as Joseph’s as as violent as Stephen’s–dying with courage, total trust and forgiving love.
More here on Saint Stephen the Martyr -EWTN
Related: Feast of Saint Stephen the First Martyr –USCCB