Laurence, Archdeacon and Martyr
The collect for today, the Feast of St. Laurence (c. 225 – 258), Archdeacon of Rome, Martyr (source):
Almighty God,
who didst make Laurence
a loving servant of thy people
and a wise steward of the treasures of thy Church:
inflame us, by his example, to love as he loved
and to walk in the way that leads to everlasting life;
through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord,
who liveth and reigneth with thee,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
The Epistle: 2 Corinthians 9:6-10
The Gospel: St. John 12:24-26
Saint Laurence (also known as Lawrence) was one of the most prominent early Christian martyrs of the Roman Church. He served as a deacon under Pope Sixtus II and was executed in 258 during the persecution ordered by Emperor Valerian.
Tradition holds that Laurence was born around 225 in Huesca (or possibly Valencia) in modern-day Spain. He came to Rome and entered the service of the church. When Sixtus became pope in 257, he ordained the young Laurence as a deacon and soon appointed him archdeacon, the senior among the seven deacons of Rome. In this role Laurence managed the Church’s material resources and oversaw the distribution of alms to the poor, widows, and orphans.
During the Valerian persecution of 258 the emperor ordered that bishops, priests and deacons be executed. Pope Sixtus II was beheaded on6 August, and Lawrence was arrested three days later. The prefect of Rome demanded that he hand over the “treasures of the Church.” According to the Passio preserved by Saint Ambrose, Lawrence gathered the poor, the sick and the marginalized—whom he considered the true riches of the Christian community—and presented them to the official as the Church’s treasure.