He Ministered the Sacred Blood of Christ
From a Sermon on Saint Lawrence, Deacon and Martyr (d. 258)
Lawrence on Trial by Saint Augustine, Bishop (354-430)
He Ministered the Sacred Blood of Christ
Narrated by Frank Dugan, Huntington Beach, California
The Roman Church commends to us today the anniversary of the triumph of Saint Lawrence. For on this day he trod the furious pagan world underfoot and flung aside its allurements, and so gained victory over Satan’s attack on his faith.
As you have often heard, Lawrence was a deacon of the Church at Rome. There he ministered the sacred blood of Christ; there for the sake of Christ’s name he poured out his own blood. Saint John the apostle was evidently teaching us about the mystery of the Lord’s supper when he wrote: Just as Christ laid down his life for us, so we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. My brethren, Lawrence understood this and, understanding, he acted on it. Just as he had partaken of a gift of self at the table of the Lord, so he prepared to offer such a gift. In his life he loved Christ; in his death he followed in his footsteps.
Brethren, we too must imitate Christ if we truly love him. We shall not be able to render better return on that love than by modeling our lives on his. Christ suffered for us, leaving us an example, that we should follow in his steps. In saying this, the apostle Peter seems to have understood that Christ suffered only for those who follow in his steps, in the sense that Christ’s passion is of no avail to those who do not. The holy martyrs followed Christ even to shedding their life’s blood, even to reproducing the very likeness of his passion. They followed him, but not they alone. It is not true that the bridge was broken after the martyrs crossed; nor is it true that after they had drunk from it, the fountain of eternal life dried up.
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. Christ suffered for all. What the Scriptures say of him is true: He desires all men to be saved and to come to knowledge of the truth.
Let us understand, then, how a Christian must follow Christ even though he does not shed his blood for him, and his faith is not called upon to undergo the great test of the martyr’s sufferings. The apostle Paul says of Christ our Lord: Though he was in the form of God he did not consider equality with God a prize to be clung to. How unrivaled his majesty! But he emptied himself, taking on the form of a slave, made in the likeness of men, and presenting himself in human form. How deep his humility!
Christ humbled himself. Christian, that is what you must make your own. Christ became obedient. How is it that you are proud? When this humbling experience was completed and death itself lay conquered, Christ ascended into heaven. Let us follow him there, for we hear Paul saying: If you have been raised with Christ, you must lift your thoughts on high, where Christ now sits at the right hand of God.
Source: The Liturgy of the Hours – Office of Readings
Saint Lawrence (354-430), one of the seven deacons of the Church of Rome serving Pope Sixtus II, was born in Spain. He was overwhelmed with grief when Sixtus was condemned to death in 258. Overjoyed when Sixtus predicted he would follow him in three days, he sold many of the Church’s possessions and donated the money to the poor.
When the prefect of Rome heard of his action, he had Lawrence brought before him and demanded all the Church’s treasures for the Emperor. Lawrence said he would need three days to collect them.
On August 10th Lawrence arrived accompanied by a multitude of Rome’s crippled, blind, sick and indigent. He announced that these were the true treasures of the Church. Furious, the prefect prepared a red-hot grill and bound Lawrence to it. Lawrence bore the agony with unbelievable calm and in the midst of his torment instructed the executioner to turn him over, as he was broiled enough on the one side. According to Prudentius, his death and example led to the conversion of Rome and signaled the end of paganism in the city.
The Basilica of San Lorenzo was built in Rome to honor Saint Lawrence and is one of the seven pilgrimage churches in Rome. Enhanced by various popes over the centuries it was one of the few churches destroyed in the bombing of World War II. It was rebuilt and today remains an honored pilgrimage site.
Click to watch our 2 minute video presentation on Saint Lawrence on YouTube at the link below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWhIKl21bK8