Saint Stephen, revered as the first Christian martyr and one of the initial deacons of the Christian Church, was martyred around 35 AD in Jerusalem.

Stephen, a Jew with a Greek name meaning “crown,” likely had exposure to Hellenistic culture outside Palestine. Details of his conversion to Christianity post-Christ’s death are unknown, but he soon emerged as a key figure among Jerusalem’s Christians, particularly influencing Greek-speaking residents.

Stephen first appears in the scriptures as one of seven men appointed to oversee the distribution of food and aid, a common practice among early Christians who shared their resources. Alongside Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicholas, Stephen was ordained by the Apostles for this role. These men, later known as deacons (from the Greek word for ‘to minister’), were tasked with managing charitable and minor religious duties.

Renowned for his faith and spirit, Stephen began speaking publicly with increased fervor, performing wonders and engaging in theological debates, especially with Jewish priests who had converted to Christianity but clung to Mosaic law. Stephen argued that Jesus Christ had superseded this old law, emphasizing the spirit of faith over external rituals and even questioning the sanctity of the Temple—a stance that led to significant controversy.

His teachings, often distorted through rumors, provoked hostility, particularly in a synagogue that included Cyrenians, Alexandrians, Cilicians, and Asians. Accused of blasphemy against Moses and God, Stephen faced trial before the Sanhedrin, the highest Jewish court. Despite a defense that traced the spiritual history of his people, his speech turned into a condemnation of the court, leading to an outburst of fury.

Convicted of blasphemy, Stephen was taken out of the city and stoned to death, a lawful punishment for his alleged crime. In his final moments, he remained steadfast, praying for his spirit and for forgiveness for his persecutors. His martyrdom was witnessed by Saul, later known as Paul the Apostle, whose conversion to Christianity followed shortly after.

St. Stephen — the first person to give his life for his faith in Christ.

Saint Stephen was one of the first deacons chosen by the early Church, a man full of faith, wisdom, and the Holy Spirit. He boldly preached the Gospel of Jesus Christ and performed great signs among the people. His courage and truth angered those who refused to believe, and he was brought before the council, falsely accused for proclaiming Christ.

As Stephen was being stoned to death, he looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, with Jesus standing at the right hand of the Father. With his final breaths, he prayed not for revenge but for mercy, saying, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” His forgiving love made him the first martyr of the Church—a powerful witness that true faith conquers even death.

𝘎𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘵, 𝘖 𝘓𝘰𝘳𝘥, 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘶𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘶𝘱𝘰𝘯 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩, 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘺 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘵𝘩, 𝘸𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘧𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘶𝘱 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘦𝘥: 𝘢𝘯𝘥, 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘺 𝘚𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘵, 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘴, 𝘣𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘺 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘺𝘳 𝘚𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵 𝘚𝘵𝘦𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘯; 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘱𝘳𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘶𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘦, 𝘖 𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘴, 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘶𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘦, 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘔𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘈𝘥𝘷𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘦; 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘍𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳, 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘺 𝘚𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘵, 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘎𝘰𝘥, 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘦𝘯𝘥. 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘯.