St. Stephen

Stephen's story is told in Scripture itself, and told well, making the account one of the most direct in the whole tradition. The narrative follows Acts closely: the deacon chosen because he is full of faith and the Holy Spirit, the accusations brought against him in the Sanhedrin, the long discourse before the council tracing the whole arc of salvation history from Abraham through Moses and the prophets to the coming of the Righteous One whom his accusers have now betrayed and killed. The most significant moment is the vision that interrupts the discourse — Stephen looking up and seeing the heavens open, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God. This is the only place in the New Testament where the exalted Christ is seen standing rather than seated. The standing posture has been read as a gesture of welcome for the first martyr, the Lord rising to receive the one who is about to die for him.

The stoning follows outside the city. The witnesses lay their cloaks at the feet of the young man named Saul. Stephen's final prayer for his killers — Lord, do not hold this sin against them — follows the pattern of Christ's prayer on the cross so closely that it demands attention. The relics of Stephen were discovered in 415, translated eventually to North Africa and then to Rome, and credited with an extraordinary burst of miracles, including one Augustine describes at length in the City of God. The placing of Stephen's feast the day after Christmas is ancient and deliberate: the birth of the Word is immediately followed by the blood of the first witness.