¹ The reading from the Acts of the Apostles, which has been read to us today, dearest brothers, while it certainly holds great wonder in its very appearance, nonetheless contains no less dignity in its mystery. “Behold,” said the blessed Stephen, “I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God”. Consider carefully, dearest brothers: when the blessed martyr saw our Lord Jesus Christ standing at the right hand of God the Father, why did he testify that he saw the Son of Man rather than the Son of God? Would he not have seemed to bestow greater honour upon the Lord if he had said that he saw Him as the Son of God rather than as the Son of Man? But a certain reason required that it be revealed in heaven and proclaimed on earth in this way. For all the scandal of the Jews lay in this—that our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to the flesh was the Son of Man, was also said to be the Son of God. Therefore, divine Scripture beautifully recorded that the Son of Man was standing at the right hand of God the Father so that the very One who was denied by the faithless in the world might be revealed to the martyr in heaven, and heavenly truth might bear witness to Him to whom earthly impiety refused belief.

² Thus, although, according to the Psalm that was read, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints”, if any distinction can be made among martyrs, he would seem preeminent among all, for he was the first. For while Saint Stephen was ordained a deacon by the Apostles, he preceded even the Apostles themselves in blessed and triumphant death. Thus, he who was lower in rank became the first in suffering, and he who was a disciple by position became a master by martyrdom, fulfilling what the blessed prophet said in the Psalm that was read: “What shall I render to the Lord for all His benefits toward me?”. For Saint Stephen, the martyr, was the first to desire to repay the Lord for what he, together with all mankind, had received from the Lord. The death that the Saviour deigned to suffer for all, he was the first to render back to the Saviour.

³ After this, Sacred Scripture adds and says: “He knelt down and cried out, saying, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them.’” See, dearest brothers, the heart of this blessed man; see his great and wondrous love. He was in the midst of persecution, yet he prayed to the Lord on behalf of his persecutors. Under a hail of stones—when another might have forgotten even his dearest loved ones—he was entrusting his enemies to the Lord. For what did he say as he was being stoned? “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” At that moment, he grieved more for their sins than for his own wounds; he mourned more for their wickedness than for his own death. And rightly so. For in their impiety, there was much to lament, whereas in his death, there was nothing to grieve. Their impiety was leading to eternal death, while his death was leading to everlasting life.

⁴ Let us, therefore, dearest brothers, imitate in some way the faith of so great a teacher, the love of so glorious a martyr. Let us love our brothers in the Church with the same spirit with which he then loved his enemies. But, what is worse, sometimes we not only fail to love our enemies, but we do not even remain faithful to our friends. Yet someone might say, “I cannot love my enemy, whom I endure daily as a most cruel adversary.” O whoever you are, you focus on what man has done to you, but you do not consider what you have done to God. For when you have committed far graver sins against God, why will you not forgive a man his small offense, so that God may deem you worthy to be forgiven entirely?

⁵ Recall what Truth itself has promised you in the Gospel and what kind of assurance it has given you, or rather, what agreement it has made with you: “For if you forgive others their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your sins”. You see, brothers, that by God’s grace, it has been placed within our power how we will be judged by the Lord. “If,” He says, “you forgive, you will be forgiven.” I have often said this, brothers, and I must say it even more frequently: let no one deceive himself or be misled, for whoever harbours hatred against even one person in this world will lose everything he offers to God in good works. For it is written: “Whoever hates his brother is a murderer”. In this passage, “brother” must be understood as referring to every human being, for we are all brothers in Christ. Therefore, let no one presume upon their virginity without charity, let no one trust in their almsgiving, fasting, or prayers, for as long as they hold enmity in their heart, they will not be able to please God with these or any other good works. But if one wishes to have God as their merciful judge, let them not refuse to heed this good counsel. Let them listen—not to me, but to their Lord Himself: “If you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, go first and be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift”. Yet we, holding grudges within and plotting deceit in our hearts, presume to approach the altar as if we had a good conscience, not fearing what is written: “Whoever eats the body of the Lord and drinks His blood unworthily eats and drinks judgment upon himself”.

⁶ But someone may say: “It is a great hardship to love an enemy and to pray for persecutors.” We do not deny it, brothers. Indeed, it is no small effort in this world, but the reward in the next is great. For by loving your enemy, you become a friend of God—indeed, not only a friend but also a son, just as He Himself said: “Love your enemies” and so on. If a powerful and wealthy man in this world wished to adopt you as his son, how eagerly would you serve him? What indignities, even from his servants, what harsh and sometimes even shameful tasks would you endure in order to gain his fleeting and fragile inheritance? So then, what another endures for the sake of earthly wealth, you should endure for the sake of eternal life. We are convicted by the clearest reasoning: we certainly could endure wrongs for God’s sake, but we refuse to.

⁷ For example, if some powerful person wrongs us, even insults us to our face, we do not dare respond harshly—let alone seek revenge. And why? Because we fear suffering even greater harm from that powerful person. The fear of man compels us to endure, but should not the love of Christ demand even more from us? If, therefore, a powerful person rages against us, we remain silent and dare not say a word. But if someone equal to us—or worse, someone of lower status—offers even a slight insult, we rise up like wild beasts, without patience or any thought of God. We either avenge ourselves immediately or prepare our hearts for an even greater retaliation. What does this mean? That when a powerful person insults us, we endure it patiently, but when someone lesser does so, we are inflamed with uncontrollable rage? It is because where we fear man, we refuse to fear God.

⁸ Therefore, I ask you, brothers, that as much as we are able, with God’s help, we prepare our hearts for patience and strive to act as physicians toward all, even the wicked, hating not the people themselves but their malice. Let us pray for the good, that they may always ascend to greater virtue, and for the wicked, that they may quickly turn to the correction of their lives and seek the healing remedy of repentance. May He Himself grant this to us as we pray, He who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever. Amen.