On Saint Stephen’s Day, at the traditionally accepted location of the saint’s death, a number of Franciscans and laypeople gathered to commemorate the death of the Church’s first martyr.
The location is just outside the walls of Jerusalem, in Saint Stephen’s Convent, an Orthodox convent.
After reading the passage from the Acts of the Apostles about the sermon given by Saint Stephen that led to the saint’s stoning, Father Eugenio Alliata of the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum (Franciscan Study Center) urged those in attendance to admire and emulate Saint Stephen; and he explained the various traditions surrounding the holiday.
In the Roman Martyrology, Saint Stephen is celebrated as a man of faith who was filled with the Holy Spirit, as the first of the seven deacons, and as the first Christian after Christ to shed his blood in Jerusalem. According to the Armenian calendar, which is older than the Roman Martyrology, Saint Stephen’s Day is celebrated on December 26. The December 27 section of another Jerusalem calendar called Hagiopolita, The Great Lectionary, which dates back to the eighth century, includes the readings associated with the holiday - the passage from Acts and one from the Gospel of Saint John: “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life” (John 12:24-25).
After a time of prayer, the people gathered there made their way to the nearby Gethsemane Convent for some warm beverages.
Mab
The location is just outside the walls of Jerusalem, in Saint Stephen’s Convent, an Orthodox convent.
After reading the passage from the Acts of the Apostles about the sermon given by Saint Stephen that led to the saint’s stoning, Father Eugenio Alliata of the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum (Franciscan Study Center) urged those in attendance to admire and emulate Saint Stephen; and he explained the various traditions surrounding the holiday.
In the Roman Martyrology, Saint Stephen is celebrated as a man of faith who was filled with the Holy Spirit, as the first of the seven deacons, and as the first Christian after Christ to shed his blood in Jerusalem. According to the Armenian calendar, which is older than the Roman Martyrology, Saint Stephen’s Day is celebrated on December 26. The December 27 section of another Jerusalem calendar called Hagiopolita, The Great Lectionary, which dates back to the eighth century, includes the readings associated with the holiday - the passage from Acts and one from the Gospel of Saint John: “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life” (John 12:24-25).
After a time of prayer, the people gathered there made their way to the nearby Gethsemane Convent for some warm beverages.
Mab