December
26, 2015
Feast
of Saint Stephen, first martyr
Saint
of the Day: Saint Stephen, the First Martyr
Reading 1
6:8Stephen,
filled with grace and power, was working great wonders and signs among the
people. 6:9Certain members of the so-called Synagogue of Freedmen, Cyrenians,
and Alexandrians, and people from Cilicia and Asia, came forward and debated
with Stephen, 6:10but they could not withstand the wisdom and the spirit with
which he spoke.
7:54When
they heard this, they were infuriated, and they ground their teeth at him. 7:55But
he, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked up intently to heaven and saw the glory
of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and he said,[1] 7:56“Behold,
I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
7:57But
they cried out in a loud voice, covered their ears, and rushed upon him
together.[2]
7:58They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him.
The
witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul.
7:59As
they were stoning Stephen, he called out “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”[3]
Responsorial
Psalm
3cBe
my rock of refuge, 3da stronghold to give me safety. 4You are my rock and my
fortress; for your name’s sake you will lead and guide me.
R.
Into your hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit.
6Into
your hands I commend my spirit; you will redeem me, O LORD, O faithful God. 8aI
will rejoice 8band be glad because of your mercy.
R.
Into your hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit.
16bRescue
me 16cfrom the clutches of my enemies and my persecutors. 17Let your face shine
upon your servant; save me in your kindness.
R.
Into your hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit.
Alleluia
Psalm 118:26a, 27a
R.
Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed
is he who comes in the name of the LORD: the
LORD is God and has given us light.
R.
Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
17Jesus
said to His disciples: “Beware of men, for they will hand you over to courts and
scourge you in their synagogues,[4] 18and
you will be led before governors and kings for my sake as a witness before them
and the pagans.
19When
they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to
say. You will be given at that moment what you are to say. 20For
it will not be you who speak but the Spirit of your Father speaking through
you.
21Brother
will hand over brother to death, and the father his child; children will rise
up against parents and have them put to death.[5] 22You
will be hated by all because of my name, but whoever endures to the end will be
saved.”[6]
Notes on Readings:
[1] Acts 7:55 - He . . . saw . . . Jesus
standing at the right hand of God: Stephen affirms to the Sanhedrin that the
prophecy Jesus made before them has been fulfilled (Mark 14:62).
[2] Acts 7:57 – covered their ears: Stephen's declaration, like that of Jesus, is a scandal to the court, which regards it as blasphemy.
[4] Matthew 10:17 - The persecutions attendant upon
the post-resurrection mission now begin to be spoken of. Here Matthew brings
into the discourse sayings found in Mark 13 which deals with events
preceding the parousia.
[6] Matthew 10:22 - To the end: the original meaning
was probably "until the parousia." But it is not likely that Matthew
expected no missionary disciples to suffer death before then, since he
envisages the martyrdom of other Christians (Matthew 10:21). For him, the end is probably that of the individual's life (see Matthew 10:28).
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Dear Humanity,
I personally encourage everyone to emulate JESUS' values on LOVE, FAITH, HOPE
and CHARITY, as the humanity has been a failure; which resulted to the more than two (2) years of pandemic and its after-effects on economy, not only here in the Philippines but worldwide.
And the saddest part of it, is that, it affected the POOREST of the POOR to even extremely be more poorer, in exchange of the affluent to be more richer.
Thank you and may GOD bless you and the whole family to have an enjoyed life's journey at home, Church, schools/universities, corporate commitments, public and places of interest.