Word to the Wise
Monday, December 26, 2022 - Dec. 26 - Feast of St. Stephen, first martyr
[Acts 6:8-10; 7:54-59 and Matt 10:17-22]"You will be hated by all because of my name, but whoever endures to the end will be saved." [Matthew]
Mondays are hard enough, but when Christmas Day falls on a Sunday, the day after Christmas - the feast of St. Stephen, the first martyr - seems to bring all celebration to an abrupt halt, even if it is the Octave of Christmas! That beautiful baby in the manger (which may disappear to the closet or attic today) will grow up and become a possible life-threatening and life-encompassing reality! Stephen's preaching seemed like blasphemy to the crowd that stoned him to death! Yet, he felt that what he was proclaiming was worth his very life. Saul, the future St. Paul, was in the crowd, serving as a kind of "hat and cloak guard" [7:58] and "was consenting to his (Stephen's) execution!" [Acts 8:1]
It would be easy to just say, "Yes, well....we won't dwell on this. Moving right along...." The baby in the manger is a truth of salvation that some folks will have trouble accepting. And some folks who claim to accept that truth will still turn right around and act as if Jesus never taught whatever conflicts with their personal political or socio-cultural beliefs! In a couple of days [Dec. 28], we will celebrate the feast of the Holy Innocents who were martyred because their very existence posed a threat to a political power!!! The flight into Egypt and the subsequent return were marked with fear. [Matt. 2:13-23]
Monday realism has a way of challenging us to look at the bigger picture. The Octave of Christmas will give us more than one day to do that! AMEN