(d.258) During the persecution of Emperor Valerian, Pope Saint Sixtus II and several other officials were beheaded, leaving Lawrence as the highest-ranking Church official in Rome. As Archdeacon of Rome, he was in charge of the treasury and distribution of alms. According to Saint Ambrose, the prefect of Rome demanded that the riches of the Church be handed over. Lawrence spent three days distributing any wealth that remained and brought the crippled, blind, and suffering and presented them as “the treasures of the Church.” He was martyred by being burned alive on a gridiron.

Sometimes we only perceive two options in a dilemma. Saint Lawrence shows out-of-the-box thinking and presents a third option. How do we get stuck in “either/or” thinking without considering another alternative? How can we use this insight to make choices that avoid our addiction or obsession? How can we remember that there are always more possibilities with the help of the Holy Spirit?

“After three days [Lawrence] was placed upon the gridiron by the tyrant whom he mocked, and was burnt. He said: ‘The flesh is roasted, turn it and eat.’ So by the courage of his mind he overcame the power of fire” (Saint Ambrose, On the Duties of the Clergy, Chapter 41, 216).

Reflection by Brad Farmer