Lawrence of Rome

Saint Lawrence (Latin: Laurentius; c. 31 December 225 – 10 August 258) was one of the seven deacons of the city of Rome under Pope Sixtus II and one of the most venerated martyrs of the early Christian Church. He is believed to have been born in Huesca, in the Roman province of Hispania Tarraconensis (modern Aragon, Spain), and as a young man studied humanities and theology in Zaragoza, where he encountered the future Pope Sixtus II. The two traveled together to Rome, where Sixtus II later appointed Lawrence as Archdeacon of Rome — the senior deacon responsible for administering the Church's material goods and distributing alms to the poor, widows, and orphans of the city. In August 258, Emperor Valerian issued an edict ordering the immediate execution of all Christian clergy. Pope Sixtus II was arrested and executed on 6 August 258 at the cemetery of San Callisto while celebrating the Eucharist. Lawrence, separated from his mentor and spiritual father, is said to have approached Sixtus on the way to execution, asking with great anguish why he was going without his deacon. Sixtus prophesied that Lawrence would follow him in three days. In the short interval before his own arrest, Lawrence swiftly distributed the Church's remaining treasures to the poor to prevent their confiscation. When the Roman prefect demanded that he hand over the Church's wealth, Lawrence assembled the sick, the lame, the blind, and the destitute of Rome before him and declared: 'These are the treasures of the Church.' Outraged by this act, the prefect condemned Lawrence to a slow death by being roasted alive on a large iron gridiron over hot coals. The early Christian writers Ambrose of Milan and the poet Prudentius recorded that Lawrence bore his torment with extraordinary fortitude and even humor, saying at one point: 'Turn me over; I am done on this side.' He died on 10 August 258. According to Prudentius, Lawrence's courage and joyful endurance of death made a profound impression on pagan Roman witnesses and contributed significantly to conversions in the city. Lawrence was buried in the Catacombs of Saint Cyriaca on the Via Tiburtina. Emperor Constantine later constructed a basilica over his tomb, and Pope Pelagius II later rebuilt it as the Basilica of San Lorenzo fuori le Mura — one of the seven pilgrimage churches of Rome. Lawrence is considered the third patron of Rome after Saints Peter and Paul, and his name is included in the Roman Canon (Eucharistic Prayer I). His feast day, 10 August, is celebrated as a feast in the General Roman Calendar. The annual Perseid meteor shower, which peaks around his feast day, is traditionally called the 'Tears of Saint Lawrence.'