Saint Stephen the Protomartyr and Archdeacon
First martyr, first of the seven deacons
- Feast day
- December 27
- Lived
- 1st century
- Patronage
- Deacons, those persecuted for the faith, stonemasons
The first Christian to die for Christ, Saint Stephen was stoned outside Jerusalem while praying for his killers, with the young Saul of Tarsus watching.
Life
Chosen as one of the seven deacons to serve the widows of the Hellenist Christians in Jerusalem, Stephen was 'full of grace and power' and worked signs among the people. Brought before the Sanhedrin on charges of speaking against the Temple, he answered with the long speech of Acts 7, tracing Israel's history of resisting the Spirit.
As they raged, he saw the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God. They dragged him out and stoned him; he died praying, 'Lord, do not hold this sin against them.'
Veneration
His relics were discovered in 415 and translated to Constantinople; the Church commemorates the finding on September 15 and the translation on August 2. His feast on December 27 falls inside the Nativity festal period, joining the first martyr to the birth of Christ.
When Saint Stephen the Protomartyr and Archdeacon is commemorated
The feast falls on December 27 on the Revised Julian (New) calendar used by most Greek, Antiochian and Romanian parishes. Parishes that keep the Julian (Old) calendar — much of the Russian, Serbian and Georgian Churches, and Mount Athos — celebrate it on the civil date January 9, thirteen days later. You can switch between both reckonings anywhere on this site.
See the full liturgical day for December 27, 2026
That page gives the fasting rule in force, the Epistle and Gospel appointed for the day, and every other saint commemorated alongside Saint Stephen the Protomartyr and Archdeacon. To keep the feast, look for a parish in the USA, Canada or Australia directory, and read the Akathist hymns appointed for private prayer.
Other saints commemorated in December
- BarbaraDecember 4
- Herman of AlaskaDecember 13
- John of KronstadtDecember 20
- Lucia of SyracuseDecember 13
- Nicholas of MyraDecember 6
- Porphyrios the KafsokalyviteDecember 2