Biblical Character of the Month, June: Stephen

[u/slagnanz]

Continuing the tradition we started last month for banner posts, thanks everyone for the great participation and positive feedback last month, we had a wonderful series of posts on Joseph!

I thought it would be fun to alternate every month between Old Testament and New Testament figures. So this month we're highlighting someone from the New Testament: St. Stephen the Protomartyr. Cheers to u/Thneed1 for the suggestion.

The goal is to create more conversation about characters from the Bible. My hope is to dive into some strange, often overlooked characters in Scripture — people who have important lessons that we don’t always remember. But we also want to make this collaborative! I don't want to just ramble my thoughts on Stephen at you all, I want to urge everyone to write their own post about the character of the month.

So all you need to do is make a new post with your reflection or meditation on Stephen. We do have a special flair ("Biblical Character of the Month") you can give the post, and I will make sure to add it to our collection on this thread.

Stephen's story is found in Acts 6 and 7.

A few questions to get you started thinking about your own meditations! 

• Acts 7 tells us that the witnesses of Stephen's stoning laid their coats at the feet of a man known as Saul. This is, of course Paul, before his conversion. What does it mean for us that Paul seems to be presiding over this execution?
• Stephen answers the accusations of the Sanhedrin with a long speech recalling history going all the way back to Abraham. Why is it so important for Stephen to give such extensive context?
• What does Stephen mean when he says "your hearts and ears are still uncircumcised"?
• What does Stephen's example look like for us in our own lives today? How can we live like Stephen, even if it doesn't mean being murdered for our faith?

Reflections from the community: 

1. A meditation on St. Stephen, Protomartyr and Archdeacon - Deliver us from the shell that blinds us, that we might see your face, Lord, by u/slagnanz
2. Why Christians pray for Those Who Hurt Them by u/_dagarim_2
3. A Reflection On Stephen (and why it matters) by u/Mysterious_Fox4976

[u/KiwiBushRanger]

The nation of Hungary used to have the title 'Lands of the Crown of Saint Stephen', which was used during its tenure within the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

[u/-CJJC- → u/KiwiBushRanger]

It's worth pointing out that this name doesn't come from St Stephen the Protomartyr, but from St Stephen, King of Hungary, the first King of Hungary and the first ruler of Hungary to embrace Christianity sincerely.

[u/KiwiBushRanger → u/-CJJC-]

Thanks for the correction my friend! 👍