August 10 2020 - St. Lawrence - "There's something about Larry"

 

Over 1700 years later, we are still celebrating the feast of the Roman martyr, Lawrence the deacon. His courage in standing up to the Roman Authorities and his attitude toward death still resonates with the Church. 

As a deacon in Rome, Lawrence was in charge of the Roman Church’s treasury, and had the responsibility of distributing alms to the poor. When the prefect of Rome heard this, he imagined that Church must have a considerable treasure hidden somewhere in the city.  He ordered Lawrence to bring the Church’s treasures to him.  So, Deacon Lawrence gathered a great number of blind, lame, maimed, leprous, orphaned and widowed persons. When the prefect arrived, Lawrence simply said, “These are the treasures of the Church.”

In great anger, the Prefect condemned Lawrence to a slow, cruel death. The Saint was to be slowly roasted alive upon an iron grill.  Lawrence however was burning with so much love of God that he almost did not feel the flame. He even joked.  I'm done on this side! Turn me over” 

There’s something about St. Lawrence’s attitude and personality, a je ne sais quoi—something almost indescribable—in his dealing with the powers and threats of the world that is so marvelous—a brashness or boldness that is reminiscent of the Lord’s own attitude toward the Pharisees and the Sanhedrin and Pontius Pilate that comes from a conviction of the superiority of the kingdom of God over the values of man. Something that is obnoxious to the powers of evil!

In St. Lawrence and so many of the saints you see what happens when you truly value the things of God over the things of man—you gain a wisdom—worldly possessions and even the threat of suffering are all put into perspective—God’s perspective. 

This is why the Lord in the Gospel says, “whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life.” The Christian comes to value the things of heaven over the things of earth, where even suffering and the threat of death lose their sting. Where true treasure is not what the world considers valuable but what God considers valuable. The Christian gains the ability to laugh at death because death does not get the final word, even though it claims to.

May the Spirit of St. Lawrence pervade our lives—his love for the Lord, his love for the poor, his courage in the face of death, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

 

That Christians persecuted for the faith may be courageous in their witness to the saving Truth of Christ. And that the witness of the martyrs may never be in vain. 

That all Christians may grow in their awareness of and charitable attentiveness to the needs of the poor in their midst.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, victims of natural disaster, war, and terrorism, for all those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, for their comfort, and the consolation of their families.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, for the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests, deacons and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers, we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to the supplications of those who call on you. Through Christ our Lord.