February 5 2024 - St. Agatha - Courage of the Virgin Martyrs

 Saint Agatha is one of the great virgin martyrs honored by the early Roman church. She was martyred in the brief but ferocious persecution of the emperor Decius. In 250 AD, Decius issued an imperial decree requiring all citizens of the empire to offer a sacrifice to the Roman Gods. 

Saint Agatha was a beautiful Sicilian woman who had consecrated herself to Christ—to be His bride—to spend her life in his prayerful service and consecrated virginity.

When she refused the romantic advances of a pagan man, he turned her into the authorities. Since she would not offer the pagan sacrifice, she was imprisoned, tortured, and eventually killed. 

For the feast of this virgin martyr, we read from st. paul’s letter to the Corinthians in which St. Paul is explaining that God’s ways often defy human logic and expectation, that God choses the foolish, weak, lowly, and despised of the world, to shame the worldly wise, strong, and powerful. 

The virgin martyrs like Agatha, Agnes, Anastasia, Cecilia, Barbara, Ursula, Philomena, Kateri Tekakwitha, maria Goretti, were not rich and power women, in the eyes of the world. And their courage—their strength of faith, not only won for them the martyrs crown, but they continue to embolden the Church—Christians like us, hundred and hundreds of years later. 

The Lord promises that the world will hate us. We will face terrible resistance in our mission to save souls, to proclaim Christ. The worldly wise, strong, and powerful see Christians as a threat: and so they mock the Church, they weaponize government agencies against the Church, the utilize the media to undermine the Church and shift cultural attitudes toward the Church. And all of that is pretty much inevitable. It’s gonna happen. It’s happening now. It just hasn’t come to our doorstep yet, as it did for Agatha.

And so we celebrate the courageous faith, the courageous chastity, the courageous forgiveness, their courageous defiance of the unchristian cultural norms, so that we may imitate them, when our time for courage arises. 

St. Agatha, and all you holy virgin martyrs, pray for us, that we may be worthy of the promises of Christ, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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That the virgin martyrs may be a source of courage for Church leaders and the whole Church in our fidelity to our Gospel mandate.

Through the intercession of St. Agatha and the holy virgin martyrs, for an increase of reverence for the virtues of chastity, purity, and modesty and for greater respect for the dignity of the human body and all human life.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, immigrants and refugees, 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 all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.

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