The Jewish leaders were infuriated by Stephen’s accusation, and they shook their fists at him in rage.
But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed steadily into heaven and saw the glory of God, and he saw Jesus standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand.
And he told them, “Look, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand!”
Then they put their hands over their ears and began shouting. They rushed at him and dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. His accusers took off their coats and laid them at the feet of a young man named Saul.
As they stoned him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” He fell to his knees, shouting, “Lord, don’t charge them with this sin!” And with that, he died.
The Martyrdom of St Stephen, Tryptic Peter Paul Reubens, 1577-1640 Musee des Beaux Arts, Valenciennes, France
Peanut Gallery: The Vatican dares to tell it “like it was”… in this current climate of political correctness. I wonder what this will do for Christian / Muslim dialogue? Maybe interject some honesty? Or, is that too much to hope for? Time will tell.
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People view relics of the martyrs in the Cathedral of Otranto (Photo: CNS)
Is Catholicism guilty of insensitivity and Islamophobia?
The head of the Catholic Church will be naming hundreds of Italian laymen to the Litany of Saints later in May, as reported by The Catholic Herald (of London, U.K.).
During the Muslim Ottoman siege of the southeastern Italian city of Otranto in 1480, Turkish soldiers had finally forced the garrison to surrender after a weeks-long siege.
Given the option of converting to Islam or every male over the age of 15 face the swordsman, every defender instead chose death.
St Antonio Primaldo
“We Are Ready to Die…”
As cited, Blessed Antonio Primaldo (Wikipedia), a tailor, who spoke on the behalf of the prisoners told the invaders:
“We believe in Jesus Christ, Son of God, and for Jesus Christ we are ready to die.”
According to the Archdiocese of Otranto’s website, popular tradition holds that when the Turks beheaded Primaldo, his body remained standing even as the combatants tried to push him over.
Pious legend maintains that the decapitated man stood until the very last prisoner was killed, at which point Primaldo’s body collapsed next to his dead comrades.
Pope Benedict’s Final Act…
Even though the canonization will be formalized under the pontificate of Pope Francis, It was Pope Benedict XVI in his final act before resigning the Papacy, authorized the raising of the 800 to the altar, as reported by EuropeNews.dk earlier this year.
The Peanut Gallery 