Saint Laurence 10th August Saints of August
“Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains only a single grain, but if it dies, it yields a rich harvest.”
Not only did Laurence put himself at the service of the poor, but he attributed to them the Church’s wealth.This act had him put to death. The Word of God tells us again how much the gift of our life bears fruit : ’But remember anyone who sows sparsely will reap sparsely as well-and anyone who sows generously will reap generously as well.Each one should give as much as he has decided on his own initiative, not reluctantly nor under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.“”Anyone who loves his life loses it; anyone who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.“. Jesus draws us to follow him by his example, more so than by his Word which is a Living Word. The whole of his Life is a Word of God, the Word made flesh.In celebrating the Eucharist we do ’memory’ of the total Gift of Jesus Himself :”God is perfectly able to enrich you with every grace, so that you always have enough for every conceivable need, and your resources overflow in all kinds of good work. As scripture says : To the needy he gave without stint, his uprightness stands firm forever.“So the Apostle Paul gave witness in this way to the greatest love for Jesus.”Whoever serves me must follow me, and my servant will be with me wherever I am.If anyone serves me, my Father will honour him.“It is the Father who gives us the Holy Spirit, the strength of God’s Light to conquer hatred and the darkness in the world. He will see to all our earthly needs, overabundantly.”The one who so freely provides the seed for the sower and food to eat will provide you with ample store of seed for sowing and make the harvest of your uprighteousness a bigger one :you will be rich enough in every way for every kind of generosity that makes people thank God for what we have done."
Some days before his death, Jesus announces once more his departure to his disciples by way of speaking to them about the seed fallen into the earth. if the seed fallen into the earth doesn’t die,: the seed’s germination process, the growth of young shoots…all this is a common thing in agriculture. As town goers we think about how a seed develops in a bit of soil; the seed goes through a time of total darkness , without any light, it is no more itself as during this period it gets another type of food (water, manure, minerals out of the earth…) and this helps it to be transformed and enter into the stage of growth, then comes that of its flourishing. Consequently, a seed a seed of wheat germ can feed thousands of others by giving out different seeds.
Whoever loves his life will lose it, whoever detaches himself from the world keeps it for eternal life. Today is the feast of St Laurence, martyr. St Laurence offered himself up for the service of the Church. Who wants to be a martyr? No one. Let us be at the service of our brothers and sisters! Let us ask the question : are we all attached to this earthly life : to comfort, human competences, material and spiritual wealth…?
Lord, Jesus, you give your life in order to save us, to bring us to the Father, for our eternal life. Help us to leave our way of thinking so as to be able to listen to others, to accept our own ’disappearing into the earth’, thanking God for other peoples’ happiness. Let us always try to avoid falling into a state of selfishness for we really are not the centre of the world.
Give us the grace to follow you in our daily life. Change our hearts, Lord.Help us to become, with others, the branches of the vine of which you are the vine stock.May the branches bear many ’fruits of love’ so as to glorify our Father in Heaven!