CHRISTMAS CELEBRATION AND THE MARTYRDOM OF ST STEPHEN

 THE RELATIONSHIP OF CHRISTMAS CELEBRATION AND THE MARTYRDOM OF ST STEPHEN

INTRODUCTION

Let me begin this piece of work with the opening prayer of the Feast of Saint Stephen de Martyr:

Grant, Lord, we pray, that we may imitate what we worship, and so learn to love even our enemies, for we celebrate the heavenly birthday of a man who knew how to pray even for his persecutors. Through our Lord Jesus Christ your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.

Too, part of the Gospel of the feast of St Stephen reads: Brother will deliver up brother to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death, and you will be hated by all for my names sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved. (Matthew 10:21-22). 

The puzzle is: why are we celebrating a martyr just hours after celebrating the birth of Christ? I think that our opening prayer at mass clarified this puzzle when it prayed to God to Grant Lord, we pray that we may imitate what we worship, and so learn to love even our enemies, for we celebrate the heavenly birthday of a man who knew how to pray for his persecutors."

THE TWO BIRTHDAY, THE TWO GREAT DAYS

The celebration of the feast of the martyrdom of St Stephen immediately after Christmas day reminds us that we have two birthdays; the day we were born to earthly life and the day we enter heaven.

Remember that St Stephen was stoned to death, not only that He heard from the Holy Spirit and perform miracles; but also his persecutors were filled with envy and jealousy. Because they could not withstand his superior theological arguments, they lied against him.

THE LESSON

The celebration of the martyrdom of St. Stephen a day after Christmas reminds us that there are many people who prefer darkness to light. Again, among Christian believers, there are many who still allow jealousy, pride and evil to keep them in darkness. 

Accepting to walk in the footsteps of Christ makes one an endangered species. It is in every sense walking along the narrow path. As Stephen suffered, we must prepare our minds to carry our cross daily for the sake of Christ.

THE UNTOLD STORY 

A story was told that in 415 AD, a priest named Lucian was sleeping in the baptistery of his church located about 20 miles from Jerusalem. He also uses the baptistery as his bedroom so he could protect the sacred vessels from being carried off and pawned by burglars.

One night, when he was half awake, he saw an elderly man walking toward him, calling him by name. I am Gamaliel, the old man said, who instructed the apostle Paul in the law. Dear reader, you will find Gamaliel mentioned in Acts 22:3, where St. Paul says that he studied the law at the feet of Gamaliel. It was Gamaliel who saved the lives of St. Peter and St. John when they appeared before the high priest and the Sadducees. The Sadducees wanted to execute the apostles, but Gamaliel advised caution. Regarding this teaching about Jesus, he said, If this plan or this understanding is of men, it will fail; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. There is an ancient tradition that Gamaliel secretly became a Christian.

Now, in his appearance to Lucian, Gamaliel told him the location of the tomb of St. Stephen, which had been lost and forgotten for centuries. After the martyrdom of St Stephen, Gamaliel had the body brought to his estate in Caphargamala (modern-day Beir Jimal, Israel) and buried him in a tomb he had prepared for himself and his family. The lost tomb was not far from Lucians church. Then Gamaliel revealed something else; that Nicodemus was also buried with Stephen. 

Nicodemus is the man who came to Christ by night to satisfy himself that Jesus Christ was the Messiah, and assisted Joseph of Arimathea in taking the body of Christ down from the cross and burying the body of Christ in the tomb of Joseph. When the Jewish authorities in Jerusalem drove Nicodemus out of the city as a traitor to their faith, Gamaliel sheltered Nicodemus until Nicodemus died. And both Nicodemus and Gamaliel were buried in the same spot, where Gamaliel buried St Stephen.

God had sent Gamaliel to Lucian because he wanted the relics enshrined in churches where, he said, through their means, God might open to many the gates of His mercy. Then Gamaliel instructed Lucian to go to Patriarch John, bishop of Jerusalem, and say that God wanted him to witness the opening of the tomb of St. Stephen and then carry the relics to the Holy City. His message delivered, Gamaliel vanished.

Lucian did not want to be gullible. After all, he had been only half awake when he had this vision; or perhaps it was only a dream. So he put off going to see Patriarch John, and prayed for guidance. Three weeks later, Gamaliel returned and rebuked Lucian for his lack of faith. This time Lucian was convinced that the vision was authentic. He procrastinated no longer, and called upon the patriarch. John instructed Lucian to conduct an excavation, and report on what he found.

Lucian did indeed find the remains of the three saints (Saints Stephen, Nicodemus and Gamaliel). At this news, Patriarch John with a large crowd of clergy and the faithful came to the tomb. He placed the bones of St. Stephen in a chest. As he did so, more than 70 people there who suffered from a variety of serious ailments, were healed. The date of the recovery of the relics of St. Stephen was December 26, 415 AD. This is why we celebrate the feast of St. Stephen on December 26.

The report that the relics of St. Stephen had been discovered sent a surge of religious joy through the Christian world. Among those excited by this unexpected gift from God was the great bishop and theologian, St. Augustine. Some relics of St. Stephen had been sent to Hippo, site of the Cathedral of Augustine. In his City of God, Augustine tells story after story of the miraculous healings God granted through the intercession of St. Stephen. After filling page after page of miracles he knew firsthand, because often he knew the person who had been healed, Augustine says, Now what am I to do? I am constrained by my promise to complete this work, a promise which must be fulfilled; and that means that I cannot relate all the stories of miracles that I know.

One of the stories Augustine did record tells of the day a portion of the relic of St. Stephen arrived at a neighboring diocese. The bishop and a great throng of Christians turned out and formed a grand procession to the newly built shrine. A blind woman was led to where the bishop was carrying the reliquary. The woman asked if she was near the saint. The bishop said yes, and gave her one of the flowers that decorated the reliquary. The woman applied the petals to her eyes, and immediately her sight was restored.

Eventually the major part of the relics of St. Stephen were acquired by Pope Pelagius II who reigned between 579-590 AD and placed in the same shrine as his fellow deacon, St. Lawrence, in the Roman basilica of San Lorenzo fuori le Mura, where they can still be found.

THE SPIRIT

Christmas will not be complete if we do not remind ourselves that the birth of Jesus is not all about eating and drinking. The feast of St. Stephen teaches us that Christmas is actually a celebration of love. Christmas teaches us to love (as Christ loved us) and not just our friends but even our enemies.

We may have spent time yesterday with the special persons in our lives. We have invited our close friends and family members, we have shared food, clothes, drinks and even money with our loved ones. Today, still in the spirit of Christmas, we are invited to toe the line of Stephen. Let this day be dedicated to our enemies; yes, as part of our celebration of Christs birth, let us now show love to those who hate us.

And I assure you that the best gift you can give your enemy today is the gift of forgiveness. Not only will forgiveness free that person from your mental prison of hatred, it also frees you from prolonged pain and unnecessary suffering.

Saint Stephen made enemies for himself by showing his talent and for this, he was put to death. No matter how good we are, we cannot avoid enemies, yet like Stephen who prayed for his persecutors, we are called to love even those who hate us in the spirit of Christmas.

CONCLUSION

Do not be afraid of doing good. Love your enemies and be careful as well. Whoever has made himself or herself your enemy will have God to battle with (cf. Isaiah 41:10-12; Psalm 68:1). 

PRAYER

May the Lord God continue to increase in our life and family the Spirit of celebration. Through Christ Our Lord. AMEN 

© Rev Fr. Utazi Prince Marie Benignus