Feast day: August 10
Saint Lawrence was a deacon martyred in Rome around the year 250. One tradition tells us that, during a time of persecution, Roman authorities demanded that Lawrence give up the Church’s treasures to the emperor: Lawrence replied that he would need three days to collect them. During that time, Lawrence gathered together the poor and the sick of Rome and then presented them to the authorities, calling them the treasures of the Church.
Lawrence died a martyr; the authorities put him to death by slowly roasting him over a fire. (From The Church: Christ in the World Today [Saint Mary’s Press]) (Image in public domain-100)