Octave of Christmas
26th December 2023 (Tuesday) Readings and Reflection
Psalter: Proper
Reading of the Day
First Reading: Acts 6:8-10; 7:54-59
In those days: Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders and signs among the people. Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), and of the Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians, and of those from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and disputed with Stephen. But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking. Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him. But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together at him. Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
Psalm 31:3bc-4, 6 and 8ab, 16bc and 17 (R. 6a)
R/. . Into your hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit.
Alleluia
V/. Alleluia R/. Alleluia
V/. Blest is he who comes in the name of the Lord. The Lord is God, and has given us light.
R/. Alleluia
Gospel : Matthew 10:17-22
At that time: Jesus said to his apostles, “Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to councils and flog you in their synagogues, and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles. When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour. For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death, and you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.
Daily Gospel Reflection
The Reflection by Fr. Thumma Mariadas Reddy MSFS{alertWarning}
Highlight: Love lives and dies for the beloved!
Guidlines: True love transforms the whole person and life. One who loves the Lord lives for him and dies for the sake of the same love{alertSuccess}
1. In the Christmas Octave, immediately after the holy Christmas, on the 26th we celebrate the feast of St Stephen, the first Christian martyr. He was stoned to death. His confession of faith in the Lord was misconstrued as blasphemy. Consequently, he was killed according to Jewish law.
2. Does it not look odd that soon after the greatest birth of the Saviour, there is a death? It is perfectly right because, for us believers, death for God is life to heaven. Death for the sake of faith and love is a birth in heaven. That is why we usually celebrate the death days of the saints as the feast days.
3. Stephen’s martyrdom is the logical consequence of his faith. It is the greatest sign of witness to his passionate love and unswerving loyalty to the Lord. His death bears testimony to the intensity of his commitment. His death shows how much he loved the Lord, and how he lived for him.
4. His death was not just a one-time happening. His death synthesises one whole life of witness. As we are told, he was already one of the seven deacons who shared the burden of the apostles in serving the community.
5. He was “filled with faith and the Holy Spirit”. He was “full of grace and power”. He “was doing great wonders and signs among the people”. He was filled with the Wisdom of the Spirit that no one could “withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking”.
6 . He was filled with the fortitude of the Spirit that nothing could frighten or intimidate his loyalty to the Lord. Even in the face of death, about to be stoned, he would gaze into heaven and see the glory of God”. 7. He confided totally in the words of his Master, who said, “When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour. For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you”. 8. He was fully imbued with the Spirit of his Master and he imitates him even in death. He forgives his enemies during his dying moments, just like his Master and Lord. His love for the Lord fills him with wisdom and courage to face suffering and death as an honour and grace.Practice: Passionate love for God is seen in a witnessing life. It is a life that lives wisely, courageously, and mercifully.{alertSuccess}