SAINT LAWRENCE, DEACON AND MARTYR (FEAST)

Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies . . .

If any of the apostles had understood that Jesus was speaking about his own death here, they would have been stunned. “How could dying make you even more fruitful?” they might have asked. “You’ve healed multitudes and preached throughout Israel. We’ve never seen anyone do as much good as you!” But from our perspective, we can see that Jesus was right: his death did bear great fruit. It opened the possibility of salvation for all people!

Jesus then went on to say, “Whoever serves me must follow me” (John 12:26). Every one of his disciples shares the same call that he had: to “die” so that they can produce great fruit. But how? St. Lawrence, whose feast we celebrate today, shows us one very heroic way. Lawrence was a deacon in Rome during the persecution of the emperor Valerian in AD 258. When the prefect of Rome commanded him to hand the riches of the Church over to the emperor, Lawrence produced the widows, the orphans, and the poor whom the Church had been supporting. “These are the treasures of the Church,” he declared. The prefect promptly arrested him and had him burned to death on a gridiron.

As for us? We may not be facing arrest or martyrdom, but each of us has many opportunities to “die” for our faith in the course of our day. Saying no to a particularly strong temptation, being patient or generous with a difficult person, maintaining honesty in a dishonest climate, or just facing a dreary day with hope in the Lord—these are just a few of the ways we can lay down our lives and choose God above our immediate desires.

Jesus promises that every time we “die” in this way, we bear fruit. Our witness might inspire a person facing a battle we know nothing about. Our humility might defuse a tense situation. Our faithfulness might move someone to seek the Lord for themselves. And over all of this, we will bear the sweet fruit of a deeper relationship with God.

“Lord, I offer you my day. I trust you to make it fruitful.”

2 Corinthians 9:6-10
Psalm 112:1-2, 5-9
John 12:24-26