The Feast of St. Stephen, Martyr

Even though we count the Days of Christmas as our twelve-day celebration moves on, the Christian Calendar reminds us that the birth of Christ neither takes place in a vacuum nor does it occur without consequences.  I have heard it said, “One lights a candle, but casts a shadow.”  The story moves on, not letting the baby remain in the manger for long.  There are repercussions for the birth of a Savior.

December 26 is Boxing Day, to be sure.  It is on this day that the that the events of the seasonal song “Good King Wenceslaus” occur.  But it is also the first feast day following the Feast of the Nativity.  It commemorates the death of the first Christian martyr, St. Stephen.  Acts 6 and 7 tell the story of how he was made a deacon (a server of tables) in the Jerusalem Church, of how he was filled with the Holy Spirit, and of how we was stoned to death at the direction of the Jewish Sanhedrin.  His feast day reminds the church of all people who, throughout history, have suffered and died for their Christian faith.

We don’t like to think of suffering and danger and martyrdom.  This is especially true at this time of the year.  But it would be both gross negligence and a dishonoring of the faith of the martyrs to turn a blind eye to this observance.  Had there been no babe in the manger there would be no stoning of Stephen.  They are as interconnected as gears in a machine.  The day is a sober insertion into our tidings of comfort and joy.

So, it is a day of two turtledoves, of a second day of reveling in the merriment surrounding our remembrance of Christ’s Nativity.  But it is also a day that reminds us that faith sometimes comes with a cost.  Just because we are not in danger of stoning doesn’t make that truth any less real.