Saint Lawrence was a deacon of Rome who served under Pope Sixtus II, entrusted with the care of the Church's treasury and its ministry to the poor. During the persecution of Emperor Valerian in the year 258, when ordered to hand over the riches of the Church, he presented the poor and the sick, calling them the Church's true treasure. He was martyred in Rome on August 10, 258, and is honored, according to tradition, as having been burned on a gridiron.
Lawrence shows us that what the world counts as treasure is not what God counts, and that the poor, the sick, and the suffering are precious in His eyes. His courage and even his famous good humor in the face of death remind us that love for Christ can carry us through the darkest trials with peace, and that a life given away in service is never lost.
Saint Lawrence, faithful deacon and brave martyr, help us to treasure what God treasures and to serve with generous, joyful hearts. Watch over all who suffer, and lead us safely home to Christ. Amen.