Reflection
Have you ever asked for help, only to receive a response that was far from enthusiastic - one that made it clear the other person was unwilling to set aside their own agenda in order to assist you? When someone comes to our aid only grudgingly, we may find ourselves wishing we never asked.
In the first reading today, we hear that God loves a cheerful giver. More than that, He supplies the grace we need - in abundance - for every good work. Acts of charity offered freely, not reluctantly or under compulsion, but joyfully and in the spirit of God, bear lasting fruit. St. Paul reminds us that whoever sows sparingly will reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will reap bountifully, and the psalm antiphon, ‘Blessed the man who is gracious and hastens to those in need,’ repeats this promise.
In the Gospel, Jesus uses the image of a grain of wheat, to speak to Andrew and Philip about the necessity of His death - the sacrifice through which the gates of heaven and eternal life would be opened for us - saying that unless the grain falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single grain; but if it dies, it produces much fruit. Jesus is teaching us that sacrifice is not the end of life, but the path through which the Kingdom of God grows and flourishes.
Today the Church celebrates St. Lawrence who was born in Valencia, Spain, in 225, and died a martyr in Rome, thirty-three years later. In 257, Pope Sixtus II ordained Lawrence a deacon and later appointed him Archdeacon of Rome, entrusting him with the care of the Church’s treasures and the distribution of alms to the poor.
The Emperor Valerian issued an edict that all bishops, priests and deacons should be put to death. On August 6, 258, Pope Sixtus was captured and put to death, while celebrating Mass, along with other clergymen. Lawrence was ordered to surrender all the treasures of the Church to Emperor Valerian. He asked for three days to gather them, and during that time he distributed as much of the Church’s goods as possible to the poor and needy. Then he presented to the emperor the poor, the lame, and the sick, declaring, “These are the treasures of the Church.” Enraged, Valerian ordered Lawrence to be burned alive on a gridiron.
The flourishing of Christianity in Rome is often attributed to the witness of this humble deacon’s life and death. His martyrdom became a living testimony to the words of Christ: “Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains but a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.”
It is in giving to others, with good grace, generously and immediately, that we die to self. And when we die to self, we receive an abundance of grace and the fullness of life from God and become channels of that grace and life for others.