Today is the Second Day of Christmas. This means the Church is in the Christmas octave. These days, the Church only observes two octaves: Christmas and Easter. Unlike the rest of the Catholic world, extending to the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, Christmas for Roman Catholics in the United States this year lasts eighteen days.
At the Vatican, Christmas decorations are left up for forty days after Christmas. The second of February, traditionally known as Candlemas, is the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, commemorating when Mary and Joseph presented the infant Jesus in the Temple in accordance with the Law. By then, stores are flooded with Valetine’s Day stuff with Christmas being a fading memory.
Beginning today, during the Christmas octave, the Church celebrates some amazing feasts. December twenty-sixth is the Feast of Saint Stephen, one of the men revered as the Church’s first deacons. Moreover, Stephen, a Greek-speaking Jewish Christian, is the Church’s first martyr. It is as an instigator of the martyrdom of Stephen that one Saul of Tarsus first appears on the scene.
Martyrdom of Saint Stephen, by Francesco Trevisani, ca. 1700
Stephen is the exemplar of what the Lord teaches in our Gospel for today. Yet, Christian martyrdom did not stop in the first century. It has continued for over two millennia, down to our own day. As a deacon, it seems fitting point out that in addition to Stephen, there are four other great deacon martyrs: Philip, who, along with Stephen is part of the group of seven men deemed to be the Church’s first deacons; Saint Lawrence of Rome in the third century, and Saint Vincent of Sargossa in the fourth century.
In Greek, “martyr” simply means “witness.” It is not what Stephen and the Church’s subsequent martyrs bore witness to but of whom they bore witness: Jesus Christ. Throughout his pontificate, Pope Francis reminded us all frequently that by virtue of baptism we are all called to evangelize, that is, to be witnesses of Jesus Christ.
As our Gospel today amply demonstrates, evangelization (i.e., bearing witness to Christ) is not and cannot be a program. Evangelization is born from a living encounter with Christ, which encounter is the work of the Holy Spirit. Far from abstract arguments, evangelization means being able to tell others what difference knowing Christ makes in your life and then having your life reflect that difference.
A Christian bears witness both by her words and deeds. Too often the quote attributed to Saint Francis: “always preach the Gospel and if necessary, use words,” is used to avoid ever having to share one's faith with someone else. But, as far as can be told, Saint Francis never uttered those words. As a matter of fact, Saint Francis and his friars preached and shared the Gospel using words often. Perhaps the primary reason Francis became a deacon (which he remained) was to preach.
“Go Tell It on the Mountain” remains a great Christmas carol!
Let’s not posit or accept any false dilemmas. It is not a question of bearing witness to Jesus Christ by words or by deeds. We bear witness to Him with both. Your deeds should give your words credibility. The deacons Francis, Lawerence, Vincent, Philip, and, of course, Stephen show us this.
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