Last Sunday, you will recall, we celebrated the memory of St. James the Persian, who was literally cut into pieces by his torturers in an effort to cause him to renounce his faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. Today, we celebrate the life and witness of St. John of Damascus, who suffered for the faith as his right hand was cut off because of his testimony about icons; and the Great-martyr Barbara, who also suffered for the Faith, and would not deny Christ. Barbara endured many torments, which inspired another woman, Juliana, to seek martyrdom; and the two, as St. James the Persian, were also mutilated before being killed – Barbara being killed by her own father, a pagan, who had betrayed her to torture and death.
As we have noted, it is unlikely that any of us here will be called upon to witness to Christ with our lives. But have we even bothered to consider what might make it possible for the martyrs we’ve been hearing about to endure the incredible torments they suffered? Somehow, if we knew what made it possible for them to endure without renouncing their faith, we might be a little bit better equipped to live our own lives according to the same faith – right?
It seems to me that the only possible explanation is that the martyrs loved our Lord more than anything this world has to offer, even more than life itself. They loved God with all their heart and soul and mind and strength; more than any love for food, or drink, or pleasure, or comfort, or power, or money. They loved God so much that they brought the life of Christ they had received in holy Baptism into reality in and through their own lives: and, just as our Lord endured torments and tortures and taunting without condemning those who caused His suffering, even praying that they might be forgiven, so, too, did the martyrs not condemn their tormenters. In this way, they brought their love for God into action as love for their neighbors, as well.
Can we say that we do the same? Do you love the person who cut you off in traffic, and pray for God to bless and forgive them? Do you love the homeless person, the hungry person with the cardboard sign on the corner, the widowed, the orphan, those who are sick, or in prison, and take the time and effort necessary to reach out to them in some way? Do you take a portion of what God has entrusted to you and make it an offering for the work of the Church, and for those who minister to those in need in body, mind, and spirit? Most of us aren’t willing to suffer even a small loss in our income to help those in need, and the work of the Church – so how might we possibly hope to think we could endure what the martyrs and passion-bearers endured?
Brothers and sisters: Let us redeem the time; let us examine ourselves; let us change our lives. Let us pray, asking God for the grace to love Him more than we love this world, and all it has to offer. Let us ask God for grace to love Him more than the fleeting pleasures we derive from our sins. Let us ask God to fill us with His love, so that we might see His face in every person we meet, and minister to them from this love; and for grace to use with love the time and abilities and riches God has bestowed upon us – to the glory of His name, and the salvation of souls.
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