Daily Gospel Reflection
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August 10, 2022
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Amen, amen, I say to you,
unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies,
it remains just a grain of wheat;
but if it dies, it produces much fruit.
Whoever loves his life loses it,
and whoever hates his life in this world
will preserve it for eternal life.
Whoever serves me must follow me,
and where I am, there also will my servant be.
The Father will honor whoever serves me.”
This summer, the school where I teach lost two boys in a car accident. Both happened to be my students. Their deaths were sudden and shocking, leaving their friends and families grasping for comfort and understanding in their grief. These boys had so much life left to live and to give.
Contrast this to Jesus’ metaphor of wheat falling to the ground to yield more fruit. The implication is straightforward: there is no new life without death, no growth without loss, no fruit without withering. This concept is central to Jesus’ life and teaching. He wanted his people to give up on the superficial comforts, to be ready to lose life itself for the kingdom of God.
What about the death of two 16-year-old boys?
On one level, the metaphor doesn’t work in this situation. Wheat yields new fruit if it dies in proper maturity. If you cut a too-green stalk of wheat in early June, you’ve only wasted it. It’s a loss, senseless and tragic.
In my opinion, this is the more apt interpretation for losing our two boys—their deaths were not the natural “death” of a mature seed yielding new plants. It’s a premature loss, senseless and tragic.
Like other spiritual masters, Jesus’ teaching on life and death reflects the wisdom of the natural world, but it doesn’t stop there. Jesus suffered a violent and excruciating death well before his time. It seemed, in and of itself, senseless and tragic.
The only thing that made it worthwhile was what happened next: Christ came back. The resurrection changed the natural boundaries of Jesus’ wheat metaphor.
I can only speak for myself when I say that I will look for grace amid these tragic deaths. For others, the pain is still too close. The truth is that God’s power is not confined to the natural, even if our pain over loss continues through it. Yes, even wheat cut down early in God’s reign can yield good fruit. We must only wait and hope.
Prayer
Lord, our God, your deacon, Lawrence spent himself for the poor of the Church. Thus he merited martyrdom and was deemed worthy to receive an eternal reward. As Christians may we also accept our daily sufferings as a sign of our willingness to join our lives to the millions who have gone before us giving their lives freely for the sake of the kingdom. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Lawrence is one of the most venerated saints among the Christian martyrs, and his manner of death has inspired cooks to ask for his prayers.
He was one of seven deacons that served the Church in Rome—his role was to manage the material goods of the Christian community, and to distribute financial support to the poor. In 257, the emperor ordered the suppression and persecution of Christians. The pope was arrested and killed, and Lawrence followed him four days later. This is all we know for certain of this saint’s life.
Other details have been filled in by the faithful. St. Ambrose and others have offered more details to his life, but it is unclear if these are embellishments or fact. The most prominent of these stories involves Lawrence’s clever retort to a greedy Roman official.
The official imagined that the Church held great wealth, and wanted to seize anything of value, such as the precious metals used in sacred vessels and candlesticks. He ordered Lawrence to hand all of these things over.
Lawrence replied to him, “The Church is indeed rich—the emperor has no treasure equal to what it possesses.” He asked for a few days to take an inventory and to set everything in order.
Then Lawrence went through Rome, seeking all of the poor people who were supported by the Church. On the appointed day, he lined them up—people who were disabled and blind and sick with leprosy, as well as widows and orphans. Then he invited the official to come and meet him.
When the official arrived and saw this collection of suffering people, he asked Lawrence what this meant. Lawrence replied, “What are you displeased at? These are the treasures of the Church.”
The official was infuriated and threatened to kill Lawrence slowly. He ordered a gridiron prepared over a bed of hot coals, and had Lawrence roasted upon it. St. Ambrose tells us that while Lawrence’s body was subject to fire, his spirit was set aflame with divine love. In fact, it is said that after roasting on one side, Lawrence said to his executioner, “Let my body be turned; this side is broiled enough.”
Lawrence is certainly one of the most venerated martyrs of the early Church, and is included in one of the Eucharistic prayers in the Mass. With an ironic nod, he is patron saint against the threat of fire, and of those who prepare food. His relics rest in the Basilica, and the Raclin Murphy Museum of Art holds this sketch of his martyrdom by Luigi Gregori. The image at top is a detail from a fresco by Blessed Fra Angelico and depicts Lawrence distributing alms to the poor.
St. Lawrence, courageous martyr and patron of chefs and cooks, pray for us!
Image credit:
Luigi Gregori (Italian, 1819-1896), The Martyrdom of Saint Lawrence, n.d., graphite, ink, and wash on laid paper. Raclin Murphy Museum of Art: Gift of Luigi Gregori, AA1972.031.094.