Pope Leo XIV reflects on St. Stephen’s martyrdom as a birth into light, urging Christians to choose fraternity, forgiveness, and peace amid global conflict and fear.
Newsroom (26/12/2025 Gaudium Press) On the feast of St. Stephen, the Church’s first martyr, Pope Leo XIV described martyrdom not as a tragic end but as a profound beginning — a “birth into heaven” that illuminates the true meaning of coming into the light.
Addressing thousands gathered in St. Peter’s Square for the Angelus prayer on December 26, the Pope drew on ancient Christian tradition, noting that early believers referred to the day of St. Stephen’s death as his “birthday.” This perspective, he said, reflects the certainty that “we are not born just once.”
“Seeing with the eyes of faith is to see no longer mere darkness, even in death,” Pope Leo XIV explained. “Martyrdom is a birth into heaven.”
The Holy Father highlighted the biblical account in the Acts of the Apostles, where witnesses to Stephen’s martyrdom were struck by the radiance of his countenance. “All who sat in the council looked intently at him, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel” (Acts 6:15), the Pope recalled. This luminous presence, he said, revealed a life transformed by divine love — the same love manifested in Jesus Christ, “the Light that shines in our darkness.”
Pope Leo XIV connected this martyrdom directly to the mystery of Christmas, emphasizing that the birth of the Son of God calls believers to live intentionally as children of God. While humans do not choose their initial entry into the world, he noted, life presents ongoing opportunities to “choose ever more intentionally to ‘come to the light.'”
The Pope acknowledged the beauty of Christ’s humility — evident in figures like Mary, Joseph, and the Bethlehem shepherds — yet observed that such goodness often provokes resistance. From the outset, he said, Jesus’ presence has challenged those clinging to power and exposed acts of injustice, as foretold in Luke’s Gospel (cf. Lk 2:35). Nevertheless, “no power can prevail over the work of God.”
In today’s world marked by uncertainty, suffering, fear, and conflict, the Pope reflected on the apparent impossibility of joy. He noted that those who follow Jesus’ unarmed path of peace are frequently ridiculed, marginalized in public discourse, or accused of weakness. Yet Christians, he stressed, “have no enemies, but brothers and sisters, who remain so even when they do not understand each other.”
The joy of Christmas, Pope Leo XIV insisted, arises from the example of those who already live in fraternity, recognizing the indelible dignity of every person as a child of God — even in adversaries. Like Jesus and St. Stephen, who died forgiving their persecutors, believers draw from a “gratuitous force” greater than weapons: a love that reawakens when we view neighbors with attention and recognition.
“This is what it means to be reborn, to come once more into the light,” the Pope declared. “This is our ‘Christmas!'”
Concluding his reflection, Pope Leo XIV invited the faithful to turn to Mary, “blessed among all women who give life,” asking her to lead them into a joy that “dissolves all fear and all threats, just as snow melts before the sun.”
Following the Angelus prayer, the Holy Father renewed his wishes for peace and serenity in the light of Christ’s birth. He greeted pilgrims from around the world and invoked St. Stephen’s intercession for strengthened faith, particularly for communities suffering persecution for their Christian witness.
May the martyr’s example of humility, courage, and forgiveness, the Pope said, inspire all those working for dialogue, reconciliation, and peace in conflict zones.
“I wish everyone a happy feast day!” he concluded.
https://youtu.be/wdbTBM-n7Ho
- Raju Hasmukh with files from Vatican News
Related Images:
