The gift of resilience

Feast of St Lawrence, Deacon and Martyr

2 Cor 9, 6-10; Jn 12, 24-26

In today's world we can no longer say that religious persecution is a reality distant from us. Instances of religious persecution have occurred quite close to home. However, today on the Feast of the Martyrdom St Lawrence I would like to turn our attention to another type of martyrdom, one which we all experience everyday: the challenge to give up our lives every day, every moment, and to be witnesses of Christ. After all, this is what being a martyr means.

Therefore, what is needed for us to do so? Some say a sense of humour! Recall how it is said that when St Lawrence was being burned on a slow fire on an iron grill, he cried out to his persecutors, "I am done on this side! You can turn me to the other side!" Joking aside, perhaps more important than humour - although this is never harmful - is resilience.

Resilience is the capacity to continue going when all else is telling you to give up. Resilience is when you decide to continue loving even when you are not loved back. Resilience is when you find it hard to forgive and yet to decide to continue forgiving over and over again. Resilience is not giving up in the face of difficulties, or when you are overwhelmed by your limitations. To be a martyr today is to be resilient in these daily challenges.

But we cannot be martyrs, or resilient on our own. We always do so in the context of a community. Our love is directed always towards others. It is a self giving love, like the wheat that Jesus mentions in today's Gospel, the seed that Paul mentions in his letter to the Corinthians. When we were young at school we used to plant beans in pots and observe how the bean grows into a plant. The seed gives life to the roots, to the stem and leaves and in doing so, the seed shrivels up. That is what we are called to do if we are to give our life to others and be witnessed of Christ.

CS Lewis, on commenting on today's gospel says, "Never has there been any seed that fell from such fair a tree into so cold and dark a soil." He is referring, obviously, not only to the death of Christ on the cross, but also to the incarnation, God who humbled himself so much as to become one of us, and in doing so, giving us life, and life in abundance.

By the intercession of St Lawrence, may we ask for the grace of being martyrs in our daily life. Let us ask for the gift of resilience to approach the challenges that come our way and be ever ready to be witnesses of Christ while giving up our life out of love to others.