Pio's Proverb 75: St. Lawrence, deacon and martyr.

Today, August 10, is the feast day of St. Lawrence, deacon and martyr who died about 258 A.D. He is known because of the way he joked with his executioners. Being grilled on an open grille in public, he was heard to say to his cooks: "Turn me over; I am done on this side!" Lawrence could have completely avoided this suffering. The emperor Valerian had offered him a plea bargain that would have saved his life. Valerian said: "If you can show me where all the gold and silver of the Church are, I will give you a stay of execution." When Lawrence asked for 3 days to get all that gold and silver together, Valerian was delighted. In the meantime, Lawrence sold everything and gave it all to the poor, lame and needy. Then, Lawrence gathered up all these people and placed them in one spot. When Valerian came for his money, Lawrence presented to him all these poor, lame and destitue as the "treasures of the Church."  Valerian became enraged and decided to execute Lawrence slowly. Valerian had exectued Pope Sixtus and deacons just 4 days earlier by beheading; but that woud be too quick a death for Lawrence. Valerian ordered Lawrence to be burned to death in public on a griddle. It took 4 days for Deacon Lawrence to die. But he was cheerful and joked with his executioners. After his death there were numerous conversions to the Christian Faith because "The blood of martyrs is the seed of Christianity." Father Saji at Mass this morning added that challlenges to our Faith cause growth in Christian Faith. When there are no challenges, there is no growth and even deterioration in faith of many.
A couple of centuries later, St. Augustin, Biship of Hipp, said this in his sermon on the Feast of St.Lawrence:

"I tell you again and again my brethren, that in the Lord's garden are to be found not only the roses of his martyrs. In it there are also the lilies of the virgins, the ivy of wedded couples, and the violets of widows. On no account may any class of people despair thinking that God has not called them."

We are all, therefore, called to be martyrs - witnesses - for Jesus Christ. Some will shed their blood for Jesus. These are those who are "red martyrs"; but there are those like us who are "white martyrs as St. Augustin points out above. To offer our whole self to Christ in our daily duties to job and family and to the Church is a daily white martyrdom.

:Lord, help us to be like Deacon Saint Lawrence and be cheerful  in our sufferings and in our witness to the Truth. Let all that see us, hear us or read us see You Jesus in us being offered to the Father for the redemption of all humankind. In Your Name, we pray. Amen.

Love, Pio