The testimony of this holy martyr, born in Spain in the first half of the third century, is characterized by piety and charity. Following his election, Pope Sixtus II entrusted him with the role of archdeacon. As head of charitable activities in the diocese of Rome, Saint Lawrence administered the assets and donations to help the poor, orphans, and widows.

Custodian of the “treasures of the Church”

In his youth, his path was cut short by the tragedy of persecution: in 258 AD, the Emperor Valerian issued an edict mandating that all bishops, priests, and deacons be put to death. Saint Lawrence was captured along with other deacons and Pope Sixtus II. The Pontiff was assassinated on August 6. The emperor promised Lawrence that he would spare his life if he handed over “the treasures of the Church.” The saint showed the emperor the sick, the destitute, and the marginalized. These, he affirmed, were the treasures of the Church. Four days later, on August 10, Saint Lawrence was also martyred.

Burned alive on a grill

According to an ancient Passion recorded by Saint Ambrose, Saint Lawrence was burned on a grill. Saint Ambrose, in his De Officiis, imagines an encounter between Lawrence and Pope Sixtus II on his way to martyrdom. During the encounter, Lawrence says: “Where are you going, Father, without your son? Where are you hurrying to, holy bishop, without your deacon? You never offered the sacrifice without your minister. What displeased you in me, Father? Perhaps you consider me unworthy? Test me, to see if you have chosen an unworthy minister for the distribution of the Blood of the Lord. Will you deny him whom you admitted to the divine mysteries to be your companion at the time of shedding the blood?”

From martyrdom to glory

His martyrdom was a supreme proof of love. Saint Leo the Great, in a homily, comments on the torment of Saint Lawrence in this way: “The flames could not overcome the charity of Christ; the fire that burned him was weaker than the one that burned within him.” And he adds: “The Lord wished to exalt his glorious name to such a degree throughout the world, from East to West, that the same glory that came to Jerusalem because of Stephen also touched Rome through the merit of Lawrence.”

The Basilica of San Lorenzo, and the church in Panisperna

After his death, Saint Lawrence’s body was placed in a tomb on the Via Tiburtina. At that spot, Emperor Constantine erected a basilica, restored in the 20th century after the damage caused by the American bombing of Rome on July 19, 1943, during World War II. The church of Saint Lawrence in Panisperna was built on the site of his martyrdom. According to some sources, the name Panisperna derives from the custom of the friars and Poor Clares.

to distribute to the poor, on August 10, “panis et perna”, bread and ham.

The poetry “X August”

The martyrdom of Saint Lawrence has also inspired works of art, popular sayings, and poetry. Giovanni Pascoli wrote in his poem “X agosto”:

“San Lorenzo, io lo so perché tanto

di stelle per l’aria tranquilla

arde e cade, perché sì gran pianto

nel concavo cielo sfavilla”…

San Lorenzo, I know why so many

stars through the calm air

They burn and fall, why such great crying

in the concave sky, it shines…