Saint Lawrence
Deacon and Martyr, Feast
Liturgical Cycle: A, B, C | Lectionary Cycle: I, II
Introduction
As a deacon, Lawrence was placed in charge of the poor of Rome. When he was ordered to surrender the goods of the Church to the persecutors, he distributed them to the poor. When asked where the treasures of the Church were, he showed the poor… He was broiled alive. Rome venerates him as one of the greatest saints and co-patron of Rome with Peter and Paul. May we learn loyal service from him.
Opening Prayer
Our generous God,
You want us to be to everyone
ministers of your joy and generosity.
Help us to express our gratitude to you
and to reveal your goodness
by sharing what we are and have
with joy and in all sincerity
like the deacon St. Lawrence,
who imitated the self-giving
of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
First Reading
Remember: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and there will be generous harvests for the one who sows generously.
Each of you should give willingly and not reluctantly, as if compelled. God loves a cheerful giver.
And God can fill you with every good thing so that you have enough of everything at all times and can give generously for any good work.
Scripture states:
He distributed, he gave to the poor,
and his good deeds last forever.
God, who supplies the sower with seed, will also give him the bread he eats. He will multiply the seed for you and also increase the reward for your good deeds.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (5) Blessed the man who is gracious and lends to those in need.
Blessed the man who fears the LORD,
who greatly delights in his commands.
His posterity shall be mighty upon the earth;
the upright generation shall be blessed.
R. Blessed the man who is gracious and lends to those in need.
Well for the man who is gracious and lends,
who conducts his affairs with justice;
He shall never be moved;
the just one shall be in everlasting remembrance.
R. Blessed the man who is gracious and lends to those in need.
An evil report he shall not fear;
his heart is firm, trusting in the LORD.
His heart is steadfast; he shall not fear
till he looks down upon his foes.
R. Blessed the man who is gracious and lends to those in need.
Lavishly he gives to the poor,
his generosity shall endure forever;
his horn shall be exalted in glory.
R. Blessed the man who is gracious and lends to those in need.
Alleluia Verse
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness
but will have the light of life, says the Lord.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Truly, I say to you, unless the grain of wheat falls to the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.
Those who love their life destroy it, and those who despise their life in this world save it even to eternal life.
Whoever wants to serve me, let him follow me; and wherever I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.
Prayers of the Faithful
– That we may be discreet and unobtrusive in helping people in need, we pray:
– That we may learn to see the unspoken needs of timid, simple and humble people, we pray:
– That the Lord make us joyful and generous of hearts and hands, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord God, our life and joy,
you give us not only what we need
but you give us the best of yourself
in your Son Jesus Christ.
Accept from our hands
these humble gifts of bread and wine,
which we have received from you,
and through them let Christ come among us.
May they express that we too
are willing to share with others
without demanding favors or recompense.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Prayer after Communion
Lord our God,
your gifts to us are humble and veiled,
like the giving himself to us of your Son,
in the signs of bread and wine.
God, who look into the depths of our heart,
teach us to share without display,
that our left hand may not know
what our right hand is giving.
Let it be our joy to know that you know.
Grant this through Christ our Lord.
Blessing
”The more you sow, the more you reap.” Let us learn from God to be generous, for he is not stingy with his gifts to us. God loves the joyful giver. May God bless you, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
REFLECTIONS
John 12:24-26
Die to the desires of the self
The Church celebrates the feast of St. Lawrence, the Martyr. Liturgical Feast Days preserve the past for the present and the future. Today’s feast commemorates the persecutions under Emperor Valerian in Rome in 258. The emperor had ordered all the bishops, priests and deacons in Rome to be executed. Pope Sixtus II and six deacons were martyred on August 6. There was only one more deacon left in Rome – It was Lawrence.
Legends say that the emperor quoted the teaching of Jesus, “to give to Caesar what belonged to Caesar!” and demanded that Lawrence surrender all the valuables and treasures of the Church to Caesar. Lawrence requested time to collect all the treasures. Three days later, the deacon presented all the blind, lame and sick people who were under his care before the emperor as the valuables and treasures of the Church. The emperor turned furious and ordered him to be burned alive on August 10.
For the Feast days of Martyrs, the Church chooses the parable of the grain of wheat that falls and dies to generate life for its reflection. This is the paradox. People are normally scared of death. But Jesus, in the Gospel, presents death as the source of abundant life. How could this be explained? He takes the example from nature, the example of the grain of wheat. The farmers of his time understood that process very well. A grain of wheat generates new life only when it dies in the soil.
Jesus speaks of safeguarding our life for eternal life. “Life in this world” is to be understood as the desires of the self and the unchecked ego, which are influenced by the values of the world. Jesus at the Garden of Gethsemane has taught us by example how to die to the interests of the self. In his moments of agony, the Lord’s prayer to the Father was, “not my will, Father, but let your will be done.” This is the moment of dying to the interests of the self. In the scene of annunciation, the Blessed Mother had said a similar prayer: “I am the handmaid of the Lord, let it be done to me according to your Word.” It was an act of dying to the interests of the self. And when the Lord taught his disciples to pray, he reiterated this act of dying to the self, and we repeat this prayer every time we pray the Lord’s prayer: “Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.”
A true Christian community would become a reality only when the self-interest of the individual members dies and is replaced by love. Evangelist John encourages his persecuted community to follow the Lord by giving up their own desires to discern the will of God.