Angelus: Pope prays for persecuted Christians

Vatican City, Dec 26, 2013: “The Church sees in the sacrifice of the martyrs their ‘birth into heaven.’ So today we celebrate the ‘birth’ of Stephen, which springs from the depths Nativity of Christ.” Said Pope Francis on Thursday, addressing a large gathering of faithful in the Vatican’s St. Peter’s Square for the catechesis and recitation of the Angelus, traditionally held on the 26^th of December, feast of St. Stephen, the first Martyr in the History of the Church.

Appealing for Christians who suffer violence, discrimination and all manner of injustice because of their faithfulness to Christ and His Gospel, Pope Francis called for prayerful solidarity with persecuted faithful. “We are close to those brothers and sisters who, like St. Stephen, are unjustly accused and subjected to violence of various kinds,” said Pope Francis. He went on to say, “This happens especially where religious freedom is still not guaranteed or not fully realized.”

The Holy Father explained that, even in countries that have protections for freedom and human rights “on paper,” believers in general, “and especially Christians, encounter a lack of liberty and discrimination.”

Pope Francis departed from his prepared remarks to note that there are indeed a great many Christians who suffer in these ways – more even than in the time of the first Christians – and paused for a prayerful silence with the people and then to lead the faithful in praying the Ave, Maria! on behalf of the persecuted Christians. He went on to say that Christians ought not be surprised by such mistreatment, since Jesus said such things would happen and that they offer good occasion for profound witness. “Nevertheless,” he said, “Injustice in the civil [sphere] must be denounced and eliminated.”

“In the joyful atmosphere of Christmas, this commemoration may seem out of place. In fact, Christmas is the celebration of life and gives us feelings of serenity and peace, why disturb the charm with the memory such a terrible violence? In fact, in the perspective of faith, the Feast of St. Stephen is in full harmony with the deeper meaning of Christmas. In martyrdom, in fact, violence is overcome by love, life over death.”

“The martyrdom of Stephen reproduces the same interplay between good and evil, between hatred and forgiveness, between gentleness and violence, which culminated in the Cross of Christ. The memory of the first martyr comes thus, immediately, to dissolve a false picture of Christmas fairytale and sugar coated image that does not exist in the Gospel! The liturgy brings us back to the true meaning of the Incarnation, connecting Bethlehem to Calvary and reminding us that the divine salvation involves the fight against sin, it passes through the narrow gate of the Cross.” The Pope said.