Posted on 12/26/2005 4:37:53 PM PST by TaxachusettsMan
[Unofficial Translation]
Dear brothers and sisters!
After celebrating the solemnity Christ’s birth yesterday, today we keep the memory of the birth into heaven of Saint Stephen, the first martyr. A particular bond unites these two feasts and is well synthesized in the Ambrosian liturgy by this affirmation:
“Yesterday the Savior was born on earth so that Stephen could be born into heaven”
(at the Breaking of the Bread. Translator’s note: the Ambrosian liturgy prescribes a proper chant, sometimes called the Confractorium, at the breaking of the Bread, where the Roman Rite prescribes the Agnus Dei).
Just as Jesus, on the cross, entrusts himself completely to the Father and pardons his killers, so Stephen, at the moment of his death, prays, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit”; and then: “Lord, do not count this sin against them” (cf. Acts 7:59-60). Stephen is an authentic disciple of Jesus and his perfect imitator. With him there begins that long series of martyrs who have sealed their own faith with the offering of their lives, proclaiming with their heroic witness that God became man to open to man the Kingdom of Heaven.
This reference to Saint Stephen’s martyrdom should not seem out of place in the joyful atmosphere of Christmas. In fact, over the manger of Bethlehem there stretches the shadow of the Cross. Foreshadowing it are the poverty of the stall in which the Infant is born, the prophecy of Simeon about the sign of contradiction and the sword destined to pierce the Virgin’s soul, the persecution of Herod that necessitates the flight into Egypt. It is no wonder that one day this Infant, when he became an adult, called his disciples to follow him on the way of the Cross with complete trust and fidelity. Drawn by his example and sustained by his love, many Christians, from the beginnings of the Church, have borne witness to their faith by the shedding of their blood. From the first martyrs others have followed in the course of the ages down to our own days. How can we not recognize that again in our time, in various parts of the world, to profess the Christian faith requires the heroism of the martyrs? How could we not say that everywhere, even where there is not persecution, to live the Gospel with integrity carries with it a high price to pay?
Contemplating the divine Infant in the arms of Mary and looking to the example of Saint Stephen, let us ask God for the grace to live our faith with integrity, always ready to respond to those who ask us the reason for the hope that is in us (cf 1 Peter 3:15).
"Pope Benedict Lashes Out At Enemies of the Church"
I thought, "What could this be?"
To the best of my knowledge - and unless he ad-libbed beyond the published text (which he is known to do) - THIS is the only statement he's made today, a holiday in Italy, and the festal reason for his Angelus appearance on a non-Sunday noontime.
I hardly think it's "lashing out."
Maybe the announcer needed to keep the audience through one more commercial break ? ? ?
Consider also one thing of which you have probably never thought. Not only do we at the feast of Christmas celebrate at once Our Lord's Birth and His Death: but on the next day we celebrate the martyrdom of his first martyr, the blessed Stephen. Is it an accident, do you think, that the day of the first martyr follows immediately the day of the Birth of Christ? By no means. Just as we rejoice and mourn at once, in the Birth and Passion of Our Lord; so also, in a smaller figure, we both rejoice and mourn in the death of martyrs. We mourn, for the sins of the world that has martyred them; we rejoice, that another soul is numbered among the Saints in Heaven, for the glory of God and for the salvation of men.
Beloved, we do not think of a martyr simply as a good Christian who has been killed because he is a Christian: for that would be solely to mourn. We do not think of him simply as a good Christian who has been elevated to the company of the Saints: for that would be simply to rejoice: and neither our mourning nor our rejoicing is as the world's is. A Christian martyrdom is no accident. Saints are not made by accident....So thus as on earth the Church mourns and rejoices at once, in a fashion that the world cannot understand; so in Heaven the Saints are most high, having made themselves most low, seeing themselves not as we see them, but in the light of the Godhead from which they draw their being.
PROEMION (introduction to the Prayer of Forgiveness)
Praise, glory and honor to him who made Sephen the first martyr of his Church,
sustained him in his combat,
crowned him with the martyr's crown,
and welcomed him to heavenly paradise.
To him is due glory and honor this evening,
and all the days of our lives,
now and forever.
Amen.
MAZMOORO (Psalm of praise before first Scripture Reading)
The martyr Stephen is the first grape to be pressed by persecutors; from his wine the Church received power for all time.
You have set on his head a precious crown, for he bore witness to you, O Son of God.
He asked life of you and you gave it to him. Today we celebrate the memory of his martyrdom.
SYNAXARION
Stephen (the name itself means "crown"), was a member of the Hellenists, the Greek speaking Jews of the Diaspora, many of whom came to visit or remain in Palestine. Concerning the Jewish faith, they were more liberal in their views and education and had their own synagogues in Jerusalem (Acts 6:9). Stephen was the most distinguished of the Hellenist converts, a man filled with faith and Holy Spirit . . . " (Acts 6:5)
A complaint arose from the Hellenist widows that they were not receiving their share of the daily allotment of food. This led the apostles to assemble the faithful and inform them that they could not relinquish their duties of preaching and other spiritual functions to attend to their needs materially. Therefore, they selected seven Greek men who were of good character and filled with the Holy Spirit and wisdom. The assembly agreed to this proposal and the first one they chose was Stephen, "a man full of the Holy Spirit" (Acts 6:5).
As the first among the seven, Stephen had a primacy and precedence among the newly elected deacons. He went about preaching the good news of Jesus Christ with courage and eloquence. Many became converts in Jerusalem as a result of his preaching.
The success of Stephen aroused envy and jealousy among the Jews who were determined to stop him. A conspiracy was formed by certain members of the so-called "Synagogue of Roman Freemen," that is the Jews from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia and Asia (Acts 6:9). They attempted to debate with Stephen, but they soon discerned that his wisdom and eloquence was far superior to their own. They attempted another way to discredit Stephen by engaging false witnesses who charged him with blasphemy against God and Moses. Consequently he was brought before the Sanhedren, who took him to the high priest Caiphas. There he was given the opportunity to defend himself.
The main accusation against Stephen was that he stated the Temple would be destroyed and that the Mosaic sacrifices were mere shadows and no longer acceptable to God. Jesus was the New Temple and the New Sacrifice. The Sanhedrin could not accept this and their anger was such that they took him to the outskirts of the city and stoned him to death. The future apostle of the Gentiles, Saul, was in the crowd. While he was dying, he (Stephen) was heard to pray, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." He fell to his knees, cried out in a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them," and died (Acts 7:59-60).
SCRIPTURE READING
Acts 6:1-15
bump
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.