Feast of St. Lawrence (Deacon and Martyr)-Homily for Thursday of the 18th week in ordinary time 10th August 2023
Homily for Thursday of the 18th week in Ordinary Time Feast of St. Lawrence (Deacon and Martyr). 2 Corinthians 9:6b-10. Psalm 112:1b-2,5-6,7-8. John 12:24-26. In the first reading, St. Paul tells us that "He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly and he sows bountifully will also reap bountifully" (2 Cor.9:6). Those who are generous will experience God's blessings in abundance. In today's Gospel, Jesus speaks of himself as a grain of wheat that falls on the ground and dies, and in dying yields a rich harvest. By giving our lives away for Christ's sake, we find our lives. These words of our Lord Jesus Christ and that of St. Paul can be applied to St. Lawrence, whose feast we celebrate today. He was a deacon and was martyred during the persecution of Valerian four days after Pope Sixtus was also martyred by the same Emperor. During the time of his persecution, besides providing for the Church's ministers of Rome, the Church maintained one thousand five hun...