Monday, December 26, 2011

December 26th: St. Stephen, Protomartyr

The birth of the Prince of Peace was marked by violence: Herod, fearing for his throne, had the male infants of Bethlehem massacred, in the hope that one of the victims would be the Christ Child.  Today the birth of the Prince of Peace is still marked by violence: yesterday, Nigerian Islamists bombed several churches, including the packed St. Theresa's Catholic Church in Madala, where at least 35 died.

So it is appropriate that the feast of St. Stephen, the first to die for publicly proclaiming the Christian faith, should immediately follow Christmas.

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