SAINT LAWRENCE

Following Saint Stephen, Saint Lawrence became a very famous martyr from among the deacons. The Passio claims that even he was born on the day of Stephen’s martyrdom. This logical semantics reveals the fact that Lawrence is one of the culture-forming and fundamental martyrs and saints for the entire history of the Church.

1 On August 23, the Orthodox Churches that follow the Julian calendar celebrate Saint Lawrence. In the church calendar, it is August 10. On this day in 258, Lawrence, the archdeacon of the Roman Church, was brutally murdered in Rome by the pagan imperial power. He was roasted alive on a giant grill.

2 “See, this side is already well roasted; turn me over so that the other one may cook as well” – these were Lawrence’s words to the executioners. They have gone down in history and become the personification of his suffering. They are the eternal symbol of Saint Lawrence’s martyrdom, making him unique and recognizable among all holy martyrs.

3 Because he urged his executioner and ironically advised him to turn his body over so that it would be burned evenly and completely, Lawrence became the patron saint of actors and even cooks in popular piety. This may sound like a postmodern joke, but it’s true. In Florence, there’s even a famous cooking school named after Saint Lawrence.

4 In many European countries, religious processions take place on St. Lawrence’s Day, August 10th. In Russian folk piety, many folk signs, especially those related to the weather, are associated with Saint Lawrence. A native of Valencia, Spain, Saint Lawrence is considered the patron saint of Valencia, Rome and many countries and cities. Because he healed one of his guards from blindness, he is also considered the patron saint of people with eye diseases. According to a medieval legend, he was the one who preserved the chalice of the Last Supper, the Holy Grail. Saint Lawrence is a culture-shaping saint.

5 In ancient times, the Roman Church had seven deacons. The diaconate at that time was not identical to the modern liturgical diaconate. This is very important. Deacons were responsible for social service. The future bishop was often chosen from among the deacons. It turns out that the criterion for election was a person’s ability to serve the poor.

6 At the time of Lawrence’s martyrdom, Pope Sixtus and six other deacons of the Roman Church had already been murdered. The authorities demanded that Lawrence hand over the church’s property for confiscation. He immediately agreed and set a date. After distributing all the goods to the poor, he declared that they, the poor, were the true wealth of the Church.

7 This gesture of Lawrence led many people to Christ, even his jailers and executioners. An important lesson can be drawn from this. Originally, the Church called itself “apostolic.” This word means that it preserved the faith of the apostles and received an unbroken succession of ordinations from them. The striking example of Saint Lawrence teaches that the Church considered itself apostolic because she was poor.