Memorial of St. Athanasius, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

Today's Mass Readings

“Rejoice, let Mother Church rejoice, arrayed with the lightning of his glory,..filled with the mighty voices of the peoples.” Exultet, lines 6-7

St. Stephen gives his witness in the Sanhedrin. Since no one could defeat him in debate his rivals used lies to attack him. He held to his confidence in Christ as he stood before them. He would become the first Christian martyr. He was the first of many sacrificial witnesses who laid the foundation of the Church. An Early Church Father Tertullian wrote that the blood of martyrs is the seed of the Church. And the Church is filled with the mighty voices of so many who followed Christ over the years. Jesus didn’t start a social movement or a new philosophy. He didn’t found a nation or an institution. He founded a Church. The Church is His Bride. And we are all part of it. We don’t live each on our own as isolated entities. We live as Christians being one Church with its sacraments and prayers. It’s not enough to say life is just “me and God.” We need to always be aware of the Church we are a part of. This is the Church that St. Stephen, and all the other martyrs, died for. It is the Church so many yearned for. The crowds in today’s Gospel came searching for Jesus because he fed the 5000 when He multiplied the bread loaves. When they found Him, He called on them to do the will of God. We, as members of the Church He founded, are called to seek God’s will as part of His Holy Church.

Let us give thanks for the Martyrs today who became the foundation stones for Mother Church. Amen.

Reflection by Br. Matthew Marie, OSB