quicko: further thoughts on boxing day

Did you know Boxing Day was also St. Stephen's Day?  Neither did I.  Turns out it was.  And you missed it.  Again.

In any event, I actually heard a very good sermon on Stephen -- the first Christian martyr -- on Boxing Day.  However, the only notes I seem to have taken revolve not around his sacrifice or even the ongoing martyrdom of Christians around the world (a huge number if you were unaware -- more Christians were martyred in the 21st century than all the preceding centuries added together*) but around Boxing Day.  Two further theories as to its origins were given:

--It was a day when leftovers were boxed up and given to charity.
--It was a day when boxed goodies were given to a family's butcher, baker, candlestick maker, etc.



*Check out Voice of the Martyrs -- particularly their section on how Christians are currently persecuted in countries (China, Laos, Vietnam, etc.) around the world -- for more information.