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8030 Bradshaw Road · Bradshaw
MD 21087 · 410-592-7071 · Fax 410-592-6803
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Patron Saint |
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Novena to Saint Stephen |
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O
glorious St. Stephen, first Martyr for
the Faith, filled with compassion for
those who invoke you, with love for
those who
suffer, heavily laden with the weight of
my troubles. I kneel at your feet and
humbly beg you to take my present need
under your special protection
...(mention here). Vouchsafe to
recommend it to our Lord Jesus. Cease
not to intercede for me until my request
is granted. Above all, obtain for me the
grace to one day
meet God face to face, and with you and
Mary and all the angels and saints
praise Him through all eternity. |
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O most
powerful Saint Stephen, Deacon and
martyr, do not let me lose my soul, but
obtain for me the grace of winning my
way to
heaven, forever and ever. |
St. Stephen was a deacon and the first
martyr of the Church. We read about him
in Chapters Six and Seven of the Acts of
the Apostles. As a deacon, he was one of
seven chosen by the apostles for the
specific ministry of distribution of
food to widows and the poor. The
scriptures refer to him as a man filled
with faith and the Holy Spirit, Acts
6:5. Stephen was well versed in the
Hebrew Scriptures. He used them to try
to convince others that Jesus was the
Messiah but his efforts were rejected.
The result was the stoning of Stephen by
an angry crowd. We honor Stephen for his
courage, his
wisdom and his love of God and of the
poor. As a Church community named after
St. Stephen, we are challenged to
proclaim the Good News and to help the
poor in spirit of this good saint. His
feast day is celebrated on December
26th. |
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