St. Stephen Prayer and Feast Day (December 26)

St. Stephen, one of the first seven deacons of the Church, was stoned to death in Jerusalem for his faith in Christ, praying for his killers as he died. He is the Church’s protomartyr, its first martyr, and the day after Christmas, December 26, is his feast, called St. Stephen’s Day in Ireland and Wales and Boxing Day in Britain, and remembered in the carol “Good King Wenceslas.” Below are the traditional collect of his feast, prayers to St. Stephen for deacons and for the grace to forgive, the Scripture of his martyrdom, and his story.

The prayer of his feast

From The Raccolta (1910):

Almighty and everlasting God, who didst consecrate the first fruits of the Martyrs in the blood of the blessed Levite Stephen, grant, we beseech Thee, that he may become our advocate, who even for his persecutors besought our Lord, thy Son Jesus Christ, who liveth and reigneth world without end. Amen.

A prayer to St. Stephen

Written for this page:

St. Stephen, first martyr of Christ,
full of grace and power, you saw the heavens opened
and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.
As the stones fell, you prayed for those who killed you.
Pray for me, that I may be faithful to Jesus,
bold in speaking the truth and quick to forgive.
Obtain for me the grace I ask: (name your intention). Amen.

A prayer for the grace to forgive

St. Stephen, you died saying, “Lord, lay not this sin to their charge.”
Help me to forgive those who have hurt me, especially (name),
to pray for them, and to leave judgment to God. Amen.

This prayer was written for this page.

A prayer for deacons

St. Stephen, chosen by the apostles to serve the tables of the poor,
pray for all deacons and those preparing for the diaconate.
Fill them with faith and the Holy Spirit,
and make them faithful servants of the word, the altar and the poor. Amen.

This prayer was written for this page.

The martyrdom of St. Stephen

But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looking up steadfastly to heaven, saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God. And he said: Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.
And they crying out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and with one accord ran violently upon him.
And casting him forth without the city, they stoned him; and the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man, whose name was Saul.
And they stoned Stephen, invoking, and saying: Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.
And falling on his knees, he cried with a loud voice, saying: Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep in the Lord. And Saul was consenting to his death.

The young man Saul who stood by, approving of his death, would later become the Apostle Paul. A saying attributed to St. Augustine puts it this way: if Stephen had not prayed, the Church would not have had Paul.

The life of St. Stephen

As the Church in Jerusalem grew, the Greek-speaking believers complained that their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of food. The apostles asked the community to choose seven men “of good reputation, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom,” and laid hands on them. Stephen, “a man full of faith, and of the Holy Ghost,” was the first named. He served the poor, worked great wonders and preached with such wisdom that his opponents could not answer him.

Accused before the Sanhedrin of speaking against the Temple and the Law, he gave a long speech recounting the history of Israel and accusing his hearers of resisting the Holy Spirit. Then he saw the heavens opened and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. His hearers dragged him outside the city and stoned him, around the year 34, while Saul looked after their cloaks. His relics were discovered in 415 and are venerated in the Basilica of San Lorenzo fuori le Mura in Rome, beside St. Lawrence.

St. Stephen’s Day traditions

In Ireland and Wales, December 26 is St. Stephen’s Day, a public holiday; in Ireland “Wren Boys” once went from house to house with songs.
In Britain and the Commonwealth it is Boxing Day, traditionally a day for giving gifts to servants and the poor.
The carol “Good King Wenceslas” (1853) begins “Good King Wenceslas looked out on the feast of Stephen,” telling how the Bohemian king brought food and firewood to a poor man in the snow.
In parts of Central Europe horses are blessed on St. Stephen’s Day.

Feast day and patronage

Feast day: December 26. The Eastern Churches celebrate him on December 27.
Patron of: deacons, stonemasons, bricklayers, horses, and those who suffer from headaches.
Symbols: stones, the deacon’s dalmatic, the martyr’s palm, and a book of the Gospels.

Frequently asked questions

When is St. Stephen’s Day?

December 26, the day after Christmas.

Why is St. Stephen’s feast the day after Christmas?

The early Church placed the feasts of the first witnesses of Christ right after his birth: St. Stephen, the first martyr (December 26), St. John, the beloved disciple (December 27), and the Holy Innocents (December 28).

What is St. Stephen the patron saint of?

Deacons, stonemasons and bricklayers.

Who killed St. Stephen?

He was stoned by members of the crowd at his trial before the Sanhedrin, with Saul of Tarsus, later St. Paul, consenting.

More prayers

Texts and sources

Collect of St. Stephen: The Raccolta, or Collection of Indulgenced Prayers and Good Works (London: Burns and Oates, 1910), no. 388, public domain (archive.org).
Scripture: Acts 6:3–5; Acts 7:55–59, Douay-Rheims Bible (Challoner), public domain.
The other prayers were written for this page.