The life and work of St. Paul

76 THE LIFE AND WORK OP ST. PAtTL.
election was s crisis in the history of the Church. At the work of Philip vre
shall glance hereafter, but wo must now follow the career of Stephen, which,
brief as it was, marked the beginning of a memorable epoch. For St. Stephen
must be regarded as the immediate predecessor of him who took the most prominent
part in bringing about his martyrdom ;
he must be regarded as having
been, in a far truer sense than Gamaliel himself, the Teacher of St Paul. St.
Paul has, indeed, been called a "colossal St. Stephen;" but had the life of
St. Stephen been prolonged had he not been summoned, it may be, to yet
loftier spheres of activity we know not to what further heights of moral
grandeur he might have attained. "We possess but a single speech to show his
intellect and inspiration, and we are suffered to catch but one glimpse of his
life. His speech influenced the whole career of the greatest of the Apostles,
and his death is the earliest martyrdom.
CHAPTER VIII.
WORK AND MARTYRDOM OF ST. STEPHEN.
Flai'Acu & 5t$dffKa\os. BASIL SELETJC. Orat. de S. Sleph.
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