St. Lawrence:Deacon, Martyr and Patron Saint of Comedians

Source: Catholic Memes

Martyr for the Faith

Little is known about St. Lawrence, but most accounts indicate he was martyred in 258AD and celebration of his feast day spread rapidly. St. Lawrence "has been one of the most honoured martyrs of the Roman Church" since the 4th Century (Catholic Encyclopedia).

Burned Alive on a Grill
Lawrence was a Roman deacon who served under Pope Sixtus II. According to New Advent's Catholic Encyclopedia, Sixtus and later Lawrence were victims of the persecution of Valerian. St. Ambrose of Milan wrote an account of St. Lawrence's martyrdom and described him being burned on a gridiron.

Patron of Comedians
St. Lawrence is that he is considered the patron of comedians. The reason is that according to St. Ambrose's account, Lawrence was executed by being placed on a gridiron over coals of fire. While he was literally being cooked alive, he called to his persecutors, "I'm done on that side. Flip me over." This account is confirmed in several early painting depicting his martyrdom. One other funny note - St. Lawrence is also the patron of grilling and Bar-B-Q'ing.

Proof of Love
St. Lawrence teaches us a valuable lesson that in times of adversity we too should trust so much in God's love for us that we can face anything with cheerfulness. Pope Gregory the Great wrote that fire that burned within Lawrence's heart was great than that from the outside burning his flesh. The Second Vatican Council in discussing the universal call to holiness, highlighted martyrdom as the "fullest proof of love." In Lumen Gentium the Council exhorted:

The Church, then, considers martyrdom as an exceptional gift and as the fullest proof of love. By martyrdom a disciple is transformed into an image of his Master by freely accepting death for the salvation of the world—as well as his conformity to Christ in the shedding of his blood. Though few are presented such an opportunity, nevertheless all must be prepared to confess Christ before men. They must be prepared to make this profession of faith even in the midst of persecutions, which will never be lacking to the Church, in following the way of the cross (LG, 42).

 Video - Apostleship of Prayer

Saint Talk: Martha, Martha Martha

At Jesus's Feet by Nathan Greene

July 29th is the feast day of St. Martha. She is a family favorite because Stacey, my wife, chose her as her patron when she was confirmed. I remember how seriously Stacey took her decision to find a patron for her confirmation. She wanted someone she relate to. She found this in St. Martha who is the patroness of cooks and housewives. Martha, along with her siblings Lazarus and Mary, was one of Jesus's closest friends. He spent a great deal of time with this family in Bethany.

I think Martha often gets a bad rap because we most remember the encounter with Christ in which she is chastised for being too occupied with hospitality.

As they continued their journey he entered a village where a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him. She had a sister named Mary [who] sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak. Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving? Tell her to help me.” The Lord said to her in reply, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.” (Luke 10:38-42)

I don't believe that Christ is telling Martha that service is bad, but instead he is telling her that the contemplative life is better. Nevertheless, the two sisters represent "the two dimensions of the spiritual life." (Ignatius Study Bible). Martha represents the active life of Christian service, while Mary signifies the life of contemplation, of prayer. We would all do well to have a balance spiritual life of both contemplation and service.

I would like to add that Martha redeems her image in a later story in the Bible. When her brother Lazarus has died, she is out waiting for Jesus to return to Bethany. John describes the encounter this way:

When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him; but Mary sat at home. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. [But] even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise.” Martha said to him, “I know he will rise, in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world.” (John 11:20-27)

By this we can see that Martha was indeed a woman of great faith. Apparently she was no push over either as she is often portrayed as having slain a dragon. For more on this legend, you should read Dr. Taylor Marshall's take on it.

Finally, I want to take this opportunity to remind you of a family tradition we started a few years back. We celebrate Baptism Days and we celebrate Patron Saint Days. We don't do anything too extravagant, but today I took Stacey out to lunch after Mass and then out for some gelatin at Paciugo. I recommend you do the same in your family. It's a nice way to bring attention to the liturgy and to have an excuse to celebrate.

By the way, if you didn't get it, the title is a play on the Brady Bunch episode: