December 26 : St Stephen

Stephen is traditionally venerated as the protomartyr or first martyr of Christianity. Stephen is first mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles as one of seven deacons appointed by the Apostles to distribute food and charitable aid to poorer members of the community in the early church. He was a deacon in the early Church at Jerusalem who angered members of various synagogues by his teachings. According to Orthodox belief, he was the eldest and is therefore called “archdeacon”. Accused of blasphemy at his trial, he made a speech denouncing the Jewish authorities who were sitting in judgment on him and was then stoned to death. In 415, a priest named Lucian purportedly had a dream that revealed the location of Stephen’s remains at Beit Jimal. After that, the relics of the protomartyr were taken in procession to the Church of Hagia Sion on 26 December 415, making it the date for the feast of Saint Stephen.