The Day After Christmas They Killed Him | Catholic Daily Readings and Reflection | December 26, 2025

Join us for today's Catholic Mass Readings, featuring the daily Mass readings from the Holy Bible and a Catholic reflection. Find peace and enhance your faith with daily Scripture. Experience the presence of Jesus Christ in the Gospel and find peace in a special rendition of the Psalm created for today's liturgy from the USCCB.Catholic Daily Readings and Reflection | Feast of Saint Stephen, First Martyr | December 26, 2025Yesterday we celebrated a birth. Today we remember a murder.The Church does this on purpose. She will not let us linger too long in the warm glow of the manger before she drags us to a field outside Jerusalem where a young man named Stephen is being pelted with stones until he dies. Merry Christmas. Here is what it costs.Stephen was filled with grace and power. He debated in the synagogues and no one could withstand his wisdom. So they lied about him. They dragged him before the council. And when he finished his defense, they rushed at him together.But Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked up and saw the heavens opened and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. Standing. Not sitting. As if Jesus had risen from his throne to welcome his servant home.As the rocks struck his body, Stephen prayed: Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. Lord, do not hold this sin against them. He died the way Jesus died. Looking up to heaven. Forgiving his killers with his final breath.This is what the baby in the manger came to create. Not just admirers who sing carols once a year, but witnesses who will die rather than deny him.📖 ReadingsActs 6:8-10; 7: 54-59Psalm 31Matthew 10: 17-22⏱️ Timeline00:00 Introduction00:15 Reading I - Acts 6:8-10;7: 54-5901:24 Psalm Response - Psalm 3105:40 Gospel - Matthew 10: 17-2206:24 Reflection - The Day After Christmas They Killed Him🎧 Prefer to listen on the go? The Christus Dominus Daily Bread podcast is now available: Video Podcast: Spotify → https://open.spotify.com/show/7H4YZ5ZIq4rVVF3670Av3t YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTPJP7WEcCSTIO2N4N_AoIsxmzIYRYiSt Audio Podcast: Apple Podcasts → https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/christus-dominus-daily-bread/id1826298886#CatholicDailyReadings #CatholicMass #SaintStephen #FirstMartyr #FeastOfStStephen #CatholicReflection