Pope Francis: Ask Stephen for gift of Christian coherence
27/12/2014-
By offering to Jesus the gift of his own life, Saint Stephen, the first martyr, honoured the coming of the King of kings – and showed us how to live the fullness of the mystery of Christmas.
That was Pope Francis’ message during the Angelus on the Feast of Saint Stephen. The Holy Father recalled the words of Jesus as He sent his disciples on mission: “You will be hated because of my name, but whoever endures to the end will be saved.” These words, the Pope said, do not take away from the joy of Christmas, “but strip it of the false, saccharine sweetness that does not belong to it…