“The witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul. As they were stoning Stephen, he called out, ‘Lord Jesus receive my spirit. Then he fell to his knees and cried out in a loud voice, ‘Lord do not hold this sin against them,’ and when he said this he fell asleep.”
On many occasions, we are touched by an event. Someone does something heroic or shows great kindness. We might not remember their name or circumstance. The two individuals singled out by St. Luke, we remember one for his heroism and one for his eventual conversion.
The deacon Stephen suffered martyrdom. Saul eventually met the Lord and became the great St. Paul. Like Jesus at Calvary, Stephen entrusted his life to the Lord and offered forgiveness for his murderers. The persecutor became a great preacher and apostle.
As we reflect upon the life of the early church, we see that Christians are persecuted in countless places today. Martyrdom continues in Syria, Iraq. St. Oscar Romero in El Salvador, and the Oklahoma priest, Stephen Rother, in our own time tell us the blood of Christians is still being shed. As members of the body of Christ, we pray for all who suffer as victims of religious oppression and offer our own forgiveness to those who offend us.
Jesus promised the apostles and promises us: ‘stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.’