Learn Religions, Jan. 4, 2022, learnreligions.com/stephen-in-the-bible-first-christian-martyr-4074068. His testimony began with Abraham and ended with the exile by way of a quote from Isaiah 66. Historically, the "Invention of the Relics of Saint Stephen" (i.e., their reputed discovery) was commemorated on 3 August. Accordingly, Stephen was taken outside the city (Leviticus 24:14; compareLuke 4:29); the witnesses threw the first stone at him (compareDeuteronomy 17:7) after taking off their upper garments and laying them at the feet of a young man named Saul (Acts 7:58) afterward Paul, now about 30 years old who evidently had charge of the whole proceedings. 3 Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed. Bible Character study Stephen, 10 But they could not stand up against the wisdom the Spirit gave him as he spoke. 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. First, Stephen shows believers they can have a powerful impact for the kingdom, if even for a short period of time. [20], The relics of the protomartyr were later translated to Rome by Pope Pelagius II during the construction of the basilica of San Lorenzo fuori le Mura. He was one of the first to conceive of the fact that Christianity represented a new order of things and as such would inevitably supersede the old order. Here is something else you might like to read: 10 Famous Christian Martyrs, Resources Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, King James Version, Tagged as: 6. Stephen was one of the seven men chosen to be responsible over the distribution of food to widows in the early church after a dispute arose and the apostles recognized they needed help. When Stephen preached these things, the Jews accused him of blasphemy and brought him before their Council, the Sanhedrin (Acts 6:12-15). When Stephen performs great signs and wonders, he draws opposition from a group called the Synagogue of the Freedmen. The true source of Stephens freer views of the Mosaic Law and the temple was Christs own teachings, Stephen showing a wonderfully ripened understanding of them, paralleled only by that of Paul some time later. In Acts, after the early church begins to convert thousands of people to the Christian faith in a matter of days, we meet for a brief time a man by the name of Stephen. Even before his death, he asked for forgiveness of his murderers, just like Jesus. He showed that time and time again when it looked like the promise of coming of the Messiah would be prevented, God intervened. HOLY TRINITY RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH, a parish of the Patriarchate of Moscow", "Translation of the relics of the Protomartyr and Archdeacon Stephen from Jerusalem to Constantinople", "Frequently asked questions: Big Ben and Elizabeth Tower", St. Stephen Protomartyr Catholic Church, St. Louis, Missouri, St. Stephen the Martyr Catholic Church, Omaha, NE, Benedict XVI, "Reflection on the Life and Death of Saint Stephen", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Saint_Stephen&oldid=1147360833. Check your inbox for your latest news from us. Martyrdom of Stephen. Only a few people were known to possess charismatic powers like the Lord Jesus Christ and Saint Stephen was one of them. Whether we live in a country full of religious freedoms or in a restricted area, we may find ourselves in situations where we have the choice to renounce our faith or die for it. Read them in the archive below. (compareMark 14:58;Mark 13:2;Mark 15:29). We met Stephen in our last study, where he was picked as one of the seven men to help distribute food to the Hellenistic widows in a fair manner. [19] A different tradition is documented from the end of the Crusader period, after the disappearance of the Byzantine church: as Christian pilgrims were prohibited from approaching the militarily exposed northern city wall, the name "Saint Stephen's Gate" was transferred to the still accessible eastern gate, which bears this name until this day. In dioceses of the Armenian Church which use the Julian Calendar, Saint Stephen's Day falls on 7 January and Nativity/Theophany on 19 January (for the remainder of the 21st century Julian). During this inquisition, false witnesses were set up. [31][32][33], In 428 (when Saint Theodosius II the Younger Roman Emperor) relics of saint: Stephen, Nicodemus, Gamaliel and Abibas were translated from Jerusalem to Constantinople and relics have been placed in Saint Lawrence church, and after preparations were made relics were moved to specially prepared Saint Stephen church in Constantinople, this event took place on 2 August.[34][32][33]. Now the audience could restrain its rage no longer, and the catastrophe followed immediately. Throughout the history of the early church, various charismatic gifts such as healing, belonged to several followers of Christ. Many people who are familiar with the Bible are not familiar with Stephen who was one of the first deacons in the Bible. Their knowledge of Jewish history and Jewish religion as he would convey it to them would compel them to clear him of the accusation against him as blasphemer and false teacher. He deserves as well to be called the first great apologist for Christianity, since it was this that brought on his death as a martyr (circa 36 or 37 AD). The first thing to note is that Acts 7:55 does not say that Stephen saw "the Father" or even that he "saw God.". Copyright 2010-2023 Telling Ministries LLC. Stephen's death sentence was rolled out by the Sanhedrin members, who couldn't tolerate the words of this gifted preacher. In this sense the speech of Stephen is a grand apology for the Christian cause which he represented, inasmuch as it shows clearly that the new religion was only the divinely-ordered development of the old, and not in opposition to it. The material world is nothing in comparison to the afterlife. The vision of the risen and exalted Jesus vouchsafed to the dying Stephen presented Christianity to Saul of Tarsus in a new light, tending to remove what had been its greatest stumbling-block to him in the Crucified One. It meant Christianity was not just another Jewish sect but something entirely different: a New Covenant from God, replacing the Old. Article Images Copyright 2023 Getty Images unless otherwise indicated. For instance, when Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, the Jews seek to kill Lazarus as to dispose of the evidence of Gods work (John 12:9-11). Peter the Apostle - Member of Jesus' Inner Circle, Introduction to the Catholic Religion: Beliefs, Practices and History, John Chrysostom, the Golden-Tongued Preacher, M.A., English Composition, Illinois State University, B.S., English Literature, Illinois State University. Little is known about Stephen in the Bible before he was ordained a deacon in the young church, as described in Acts 6:1-6. God often uses the person's godly character under fire to convict those to whom he is bearing verbal witness. Important churches and sites dedicated to Saint Stephen are: This article is about Deacon Stephen, the first martyred saint. This also has the effect of pushing the Feast of the Holy Innocents to the 29 December. The emotional appeal lies in the reverential and feeling manner in which he handles the history sacred to them all. In Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United Kingdom, the day is celebrated as "Boxing Day". Martyrdom of Stephen. It is generally believed that this. The Holy Spirit equips believers to do things they could not humanly do. He showed firstly that God had never limited himself to one location (Acts 7:2;Acts 7:9;Acts 7:30;Acts 7:44;Acts 7:48), and secondly that the people of Israel had always rejected Gods messengers (Acts 7:9;Acts 7:25;Acts 7:35;Acts 7:40). Some Orthodox churches, particularly in the west, follow a modified Julian calendar that places date names identically with the standard Gregorian calendar of widespread civil usage. Photo credit:Wikimedia Commons-Public Domain/Annibale Carracci. He was a man full of the Holy Spirit, strong in faith, gifted in the working of miracles and brilliant in debating with the opponents of Christianity ( Acts 6:1-10 ). of an enthusiastic faith and of a deep spirituality, and his activity was not restricted to the functions of his office; in fact while nothing is said of the manner in which he fulfilled the duties of his office, though without doubt he fulfilled them faithfully, the record makes it very clear that the importance of Stephen lay in his activity as a preacher, a witness for Christ; it is this activity which has given him the place he holds in history (Acts 22:20). [13] Another possibility is that the discrepancies come from an ancient Jewish tradition which was not included in the scriptures or may have been popular among people of Jerusalem who were not scribes. This revelation coupled with the splendid personality of Stephen, the testimony of his righteous life and the noble bravery of his sublime death, and above all his dying prayer, fell upon the honest soul of Saul with an irresistible force and inevitably brought on the Damascus event, as Augustine clearly recognized: Si Stephanus non orasset, ecclesia Paulum non habuisset. Judged by his teaching, Stephen may be called the forerunner of Paul. Though it marks the beginning of the first great persecution of Christians, the death of the first Christian martyr resulted in the greatest acquisition Christianity has probably ever made, the conversion of Saul of Tarsus. He was not at all worried about his earthly existence and stood firm in his belief in Christ. He took this opportunity to preach Christianity, which angered several Jewish leaders and priests. He preached the teachings of Christ to the Greek-speaking Jews. [Acts 6:9] Members of these synagogues had challenged Stephen's teachings, but Stephen had bested them in debate. Psalm 82:3 New Living Translation (NLT) 3 "Give justice to the poor and the orphan; uphold the rights of the oppressed and the destitute. Thus the aim of Stephen was to point out to his hearers the true meaning of Jewish history and Jewish Law in reference to the present, i.e. [Acts 11:1920][11], The exact site of Stephen's stoning is not mentioned in Acts; instead there are two different traditions. 6. Our recommended activities are based on age but these are a guide. However, Stephen did not back down. Customs of Moses (Acts 6:14) were the institutions that distinguished the Jews and that were derived from Moses. Stephen explained how God fulfilled the promises He had made to Abraham through the events in history. God appeared to Moses in the burning bush, [Acts 7:30-32] and inspired Moses to lead his people out of Egypt. Stephen more than met the requirements of the office to which he was elected (Acts 6:3); the record characterizes him as a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit (Acts 6:5), i.e. We strive to recommend the very best things that are suggested by our community and are things we would do ourselves - our aim is to be the trusted friend to parents. The Arrest of Stephen 7 So the word of God continued to spread. St. Stephen, (died 36 ce, Jerusalem; feast day December 26), Christian deacon in Jerusalem and the first Christian martyr, whose apology before the Sanhedrin (Acts of the Apostles 7) points to a distinct strand of belief in early Christianity. The contents of his speech are a recital of the most marked phases of Jewish history in the past, but as read from the point of view of its out-workings in the present old facts interpreted by a spirit-filled disciple of Christ. Once the selection was completed, the newly chosen deacons were set before the apostles who laid their hands on them and prayed over them. Stephen reminded everyone of how Moses was directed by God to reach out to people and refrain them from worshipping idols and stopping their slavery. Saint Stephen is also commemorated on 4 January (Synaxis of the Seventy Apostles) in the Eastern Orthodox Church. Father: Zebedee Mother: Salome Brother: John Hometown: He lived in Capernaum on the Sea of Galilee. St. Stephen the Martyr Church, Omaha, Nebraska, Saint Stephen is one of the sculptures on the side of the, Saint Stephen is featured as the eponymous subject of a song by the, This page was last edited on 30 March 2023, at 12:57. Zavada, Jack. 12 So they stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. Not too long after, Saul would be converted by Jesus and become the great Christian missionary and apostle Paul. This recourse to lynch law may have been connived at by the Roman authorities, since the act was without political significance. As they couldn't fabricate any counterargument to Stephen's vision, they produced false witnesses against him. It's library of books The Bible is a library of 66 books, written by 44 authors under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit over a period of about 1,500 years. Stephen prayed that the Lord would receive his spirit and his killers be forgiven, sank to his knees, and "fell asleep". [2], In a long speech to the Sanhedrin comprising almost the whole of Acts chapter 7, Stephen presents his view of the history of Israel. It is said that Stephen's life and death served as a catalyst in the spread of Christianity both directly and indirectly. At his trial, after he reviewed the truthful history of Israel, Stephen condemned the Jewish leaders for not keeping the law and for killing the prophets and the Just One. You have subscribed to: Remember that you can always manage your preferences or unsubscribe through the link at the foot of each newsletter. Why did Stephen become the first martyr for the Christian faith, and what can the church today learn about this saint from the first century? He performed great wonders and miraculous signs, was known for his wisdom, and spoke with power (Acts 6:3-10). [7] Stephen denounces his listeners[6] as "stiff-necked" people who, just as their ancestors had done, resist the Holy Spirit. Christian Beliefs - Stephen Eyre 2001-01-25 In this twelve-session LifeGuide Bible Study, Stephen Eyre introduces what you need to know about God, Christ, the Holy Spirit, human nature, sin, salvation, holiness, the church, mission, revelation and the last things. It may seem odd that a man who receives mention and dies within two chapters of the Bible has a great impact on believers today, but Christians can glean a lot of information from this saint. Election and Ordination of Deacons. Acts 7:55 in all English translations. 1,000 Trivia Facts About the Bible?is a fun, informative, and entertaining way to see how well you know the Good Book. However, before he died, he called out to God, Lord Jesus, receive my Spirit. Immediately after this, he kneeled down and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge and then he died. [2] The reason for the appointment of the deacons is stated to have been dissatisfaction among Hellenistic (that is, Greek-influenced and Greek-speaking) Jews that their widows were being slighted in preference to Hebraic ones in the daily distribution of food. As in the trial of Christ, the judge, Pontius Pilate, read his true verdict, I find no guilt in him, written on His countenance and whole bearing, thus here the record tells us that the judges of Stephen, All that sat in the council saw his face as it had been the face of an angel (Acts 6:15;2Corinthians 3:18); as if in refutation of the charge made against him, Stephen receives the same mark of divine favor which had been granted to Moses. He was an extremely righteous man who was appointed by the early Church to feed the widows. Quick Facts They then drove all the other Greek-speaking Jewish Christians out of Jerusalem (Acts 8:1-3). Stephen recounts the stories of the patriarchs in some depth, and goes into even more detail in the case of Moses. The other two Philips in the Bible were servants of Christ and instrumental in the early church: Philip the disciple and apostle of Christ, and Philip the . The climax of his speech is reached inActs 7:51-53, when Stephen, breaking off the line of argument, suddenly in direct address turns upon his hearers, and, the accused becoming the accuser, charges them openly with the sin of resisting the Holy Spirit, with the murder of the prophets and the Righteous One, and with continual disobedience to the Law. They had killed the prophets who had protested against the dead ritualism of the temple-worship and raised their voice in behalf of a true spiritual worship as that of the tabernacle had been (Acts 7:44-50,Acts 7:52). We recommend that these ideas are used as inspiration, that ideas are undertaken with appropriate adult supervision, and that each adult uses their own discretion and knowledge of their children to consider the safety and suitability. According to the Bible stories, Stephen was a faithful man who possessed charismatic powers. Enroll in Online Course. When Stephen preached an impassioned defense of Christianity, a mob dragged him outside the city and stoned him. What Stephen's Name Means. He accepted Christianity and became one of the seven deacons chosen by the disciples to take care of the widows and the needy people in Jerusalem (Acts 6:1-5). 59 While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." 60 Then he fell on his knees and cried out, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." When he had said this, he fell asleep. He uses very Jewish examples, but his argument follows a Greek-like argument, similar to the ones used by Plato and Socrates. [13] To the objection that it seems unlikely that such a long speech could be reproduced in the text of Acts exactly as it was delivered, some Biblical scholars have replied that Stephen's speech shows a distinctive personality behind it. Stephen the First Martyr", "Golden Legend Invention of Saint Stephen, Protomartyr", "Translation of the Relics of Saint Stephen the Protomartyr", " - ", " - ", " (415)", "Finding of the relics of Saint Gamaliel", "Uncovering of the relics of the Holy Protomartyr and Archdeacon Stephen", "THE TRANSFER FROM JERUSALEM TO CONSTANTINOPLE OF THE RELICS OF THE HOLY FIRSTMARTYR STEPHEN", "Orthodox Calendar. Nevertheless, the Israelites turned to other gods. This sacrifice created turmoil in Jerusalem, where the Jewish Council was forcing Christians and persecuting them. The Catholic, Anglican, Oriental Orthodox, Eastern Orthodox, and Lutheran churches and the Church of the East view Stephen as a saint. R. J. Knowling, Acts in Expositors Greek Testament ., 2 (1900); Feine, PRE 3 , 19 (1907); Pahncke in Studien u. Krit . Stephen is stated to have been full of faith and the Holy Spirit and to have performed miracles among the people. Well send you tons of inspiration to help you find a hidden gem in your local area or plan a big day out. He followed the Lord's path and just like Him, he pleaded for forgiveness for his murderers right before his death. He brought out the topic of Moses and their journey of meeting with God in a burning bush amidst the wilderness of Midian. Third, and most importantly, Stephen shows us the cost of faith. Stephen's sermon is a different kind of prophetic speech. [4] Artistic representations often show Stephen with a crown symbolising martyrdom, three stones, martyr's palm frond, censer, and often holding a miniature church building. But rather than be silenced, Stephen spoke with even more boldness. One, claimed by noted French archaeologists Louis-Hugues Vincent (18721960) and Flix-Marie Abel (18781953) to be ancient, places the event at Jerusalem's northern gate, while another one, dated by Vincent and Abel to the Middle Ages and no earlier than the 12th century, locates it at the eastern gate. [28] Stephen is remembered in the Church of England with a Festival on 26 December.[29]. Best Known For: Saint Stephen is recognized as a saint and the first martyr in Christian theology. From that moment on, Saul's life was turned upside down. This day is also called the "Third Day of the Nativity" because it is the third day of the Christmas season. Trilingual Rajnandini has also published work in a supplement for 'The Telegraph', and had her poetry shortlisted in Poems4Peace, an international project. This enraged some of the members of the local synagogues. With his profound teachings, Stephen successfully managed to convert many of them into followers of Christ by engaging them in religious discussions. The Jews of the Roman empire always questioned God's grace in terms of Christianity and whenever they failed to produce an argument, oppositions and false claims were put forth by them. If you like what you're reading, you can get free daily updates through the RSS feed here. Retrieved from https://www.learnreligions.com/stephen-in-the-bible-first-christian-martyr-4074068. In those churches, then, the date the feast is observed is generally known as 27 December. Through the life and work of Jesus, everything had changed. The Crusaders initially called the main northern gate of Jerusalem "Saint Stephen's Gate" (in Latin, Porta Sancti Stephani), highlighting its proximity to the site of martyrdom of Saint Stephen, marked by the church and monastery built by Empress Eudocia. He proclaimed the gospel after Jesus' resurrection and was the first apostle to be martyred for his faith. At this point he was attacked, and even the one who later became the apostle Paul was consenting to his death. He showed that time and time again when it looked like the promise of coming of the Messiah would be prevented, God intervened. He was likely Jewish: Jews, from an early age, memorized portions of the Old Testament. Subscribe for virtual tools, STEM-inspired play, Even Philo characterizes the Law of Moses in distinction from the laws of other nations, as stedfast, immovable and unchangeable, placing it on a level with the laws of Nature. At Kidadl we pride ourselves on offering families original ideas to make the most of time spent together at home or out and about, wherever you are in the world. The article above also shows how his Hellenistic and Hebrew upbringing influenced the Apology-like speech he gives to the Sanhedrin, the Jewish Council. God appeared to Moses in the burning bush,[Acts 7:3032] and inspired Moses to lead his people out of Egypt. Both our Blessed Lord and St. Stephen were treated as outcasts, and put to death outside the city. Therefore, we cannot call Stephen an apostle. This helped him to preach to multiple audiences. This language is important. As his name and his relations in the church at Jerusalem seem to imply (Acts 6:3ff), he was a Hellenist, i.e. Eventually, Stephen told how Jesus was the one who came as the fulfillment of Gods promises. [Acts 6:5, 8], It seems to have been among synagogues of Hellenistic Jews that he performed his teachings and "signs and wonders" since it is said that he aroused the opposition of the "Synagogue of the Freedmen", and "of the Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians, and of them that were of Cilicia and Asia". In Stephen's death, as in Christ's, both love and evil are seen in clear focus. This article contains incorrect information, This article doesnt have the information Im looking for. The main arguments of the speech may be summed up as follows: (a) Gods self-manifestation to Israel in revealing His covenant and His will, so far from being bound to one sanctuary and conveyed to one single person (Moses), began long before Moses and long before there was a temple. Prejudiced and enraged as they were, the unanswerable arguments of Stephen, based on their own Scriptures, made them mad with fury, and doubtless through their demonstrations they stopped the speech. Reaching the destination isn't important, but we must focus on the journey first. Bible Characters. 1 Chronicles 16:11 Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually! Fearlessly, he stood in front of the Jewish council and put forth his words for Christ. He showed to the Sanhedrin he had an immense knowledge of the Scriptures, and through his Greek rhetoric, he had the apologetic power of a speaker like Apollos (Acts 18:24). Thus the new feature that it furnishes is its philosophy of this history which might be termed the Christian philosophy of Jewish history. The disciples chose Stephen, and six others, and prayed over them as they began their ministry. She has worked for various publishing companies, magazines, newspapers, and literary agencies and has edited the work of authors such as Jerry B. Jenkins and Michelle Medlock Adams. Of the seven men, all Hellenists, elected to this office at the occasion of a grievance of the Hellenistic Christians in the Jerusalem church against the Hebrew Christians, to the effect that in the distribution of alms their widows were being discriminated against, Stephen, who heads the list, is by far the most distinguished. It is a public holiday in many nations that are of historic Catholic, Anglican and Lutheran traditions, including Austria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Ireland, Luxembourg, Slovakia, Poland, Italy, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Catalonia and the Balearic Isles. What seems like a tragedy can somehow be part of God's great plan. Furious at this humiliation, they suborned false testimony that Stephen had preached blasphemy against Moses and God. Saint Stephen was the first Christian martyr. In the Eastern Orthodox Church, those Eastern Catholic Churches which follow the Byzantine Rite, and in Oriental Orthodox Churches (e.g., Coptic, Syrian, Malankara) Saint Stephen's feast day is celebrated on 27 December, due to the celebration of the Synaxis of the Theotokos on the 26 December. Jesus answered directly and clearly, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting" (verses 4-5). "Stephen in the Bible Was the First Christian Martyr." 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