Stephen

In the Christian tradition

Stephen is the first Christian martyr (protomartyr), one of the seven deacons appointed in Acts 6 to assist the apostles, whose stoning is recounted in Acts 7 with his dying prayer for his persecutors ("Lord, do not hold this sin against them"). The Catholic and Anglican calendars commemorate him on December 26, the day after Christmas, with the Orthodox calendar on December 27.

Stephen's placement at December 26 in the Western calendar, the day after Christmas, links the protomartyr immediately to the Nativity: the King who has been born is also the King who will be witnessed unto death. The narrative of Stephen's martyrdom in Acts 7 contains the longest single speech in Acts (Stephen's defense before the Sanhedrin) and one of the most-cited passages on Christian forgiveness ("Lord, do not hold this sin against them"). The name has been in continuous Christian use across all the traditions; King Stephen of Hungary (eleventh century), Pope Stephen I (third century), Stephen Langton (Archbishop of Canterbury and dividers of the Bible into chapters), and many other major Christian figures have carried the name. Modern English-speaking Christian families use it freely.