(Feast Day ~ August 18)

Helena came on a pilgrimage to the holy places. For the Holy Ghost had inspired her to seek the wood of the Cross. Wherefore she came to Golgotha; and there she spake within herself on this wise: ‘Behold the battlefield! Where is the sign of victory? I seek the Standard of Salvation. Am I upon a throne and the Lord’s Cross in the dust? Am I in kingly halls and Christ’s triumph in ruins? There it must needs be lying hid, and therefore in this place there lieth hid the palm of life eternal.’

So spoke St. Ambrose in a sermon in praise of St. Helena. He was speaking of this woman who, through her perseverance and faith, discovered the True Cross of Our Lord Jesus Christ and who built the churches which to this day adorn the holy places of His Passion and of His birth.

There are several strands of tradition regarding St. Helena’s birth, around the year 255. Some say that she was a princess, the daughter of the King of Brittany; others that she was possibly an inn-keeper’s daughter, born in Bithynia. Whatever the truth of her origins, the fact remains that, while still a very yong woman, she married a Roman officer, the General Constantius Chlorus, and they had a son, Constantine, who was born in 274. Constantius became the Emperor in 292 and divorced Helena for a more politically favorable marriage to the step-daughter of the Emperor Maximian. Even though she was abandoned by her husband, Helena was still honored by her son, Constantine, and when he succeeded as Emperor in 306, she was given proper recognition and respect and called Empress.

Christians had suffered through many persecutions in the preceding centuries, but the faith had continued to spread throughout the Empire. Helena herself – perhaps secretly at first – declared herself to be a Christian (practicing her faith particularly by helping the poor and prisoners) and her influence began to be felt by her son. The famous story of Constantine’s vision of the Cross before a decisive battle against Maxentius led to his issuing of the Edict of Milan in 313, making the practice of Christianity legal. Again, the words St. Ambrose attributed to St. Helena: ‘Mary in her holiness bore the Lord, I will search out his Cross! She carried him when he was born; I will carry him now that he is risen from the dead! She caused God to be seen among men; I will raise up his Standard from these ruins for the healing of sinners.’

When she was more than 60 years old, St. Helena was able to realize her long-held dream of visiting the Holy Land and walking in the footsteps of Our Lord. Her desire was to see the places where he had been born, where he taught, and where he was crucified and rose from the dead. While there, she determined to search for the Cross itself, if it could still be found. Since former emperors had built pagan temples over the holy sites, the local Christians knew where these places were. They guided St. Helena in her search and eventually three discarded crosses were found. The story of how a healing took place, revealing which was Jesus’ Cross, has been told for 1700 years. Some of the wood of this Cross was sent by St. Helena to Constantinople (the city which her son had made the Empire’s capital) and to Rome. She paid for the construction of the church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem and the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.

The Emperor Constantine was eventually baptized into the Church and, through the continuing influence of his mother, made Christianity the official religion of the Empire. When the Arian heresy threatened the stability of the church and the Empire, he called for the first Council to be held in Nicaea in 325. In St. Ambrose’s words: Wisely hath Helena done in setting the Cross above kings’ heads, that on kings, Christ’s Cross may be adored. For to bow down to the holy sign of Redemption is not a novelty but an act of godliness. God therefore is the nail of the Roman Empire which ruleth the whole globe, and clotheth the brows of princes, that they who once were persecutors may now be preachers.

Her pilgrimage ended and her quest satisfied, St. Helena fell asleep in the Lord in Rome around the year 330. By her discovery of the True Cross and the building of the shrines she had made a lasting visible focus for Christians; and by her influence on her son, she had made it possible for Christianity to thrive and spread to all the world. We give thanks to Almighty God for the witness of his saints, especially that of the Empress, St. Helena.

(Feast Day ~ August 10)

It is in times of persecution and hardship that the godliness of the saints is most clearly revealed. St. Laurence, 3rd century deacon of Rome, is an example from the early years of the Church of those qualities which make one a saint.

Although history does not record details of his early life, it is thought that Laurence was a Spaniard who came to Rome for study as a young man. When he offered himself in service to the Church, he was placed under the tutelage of Archdeacon Sixtus, who found him to be a virtuous and faithful Christian.

In 257, the Emperor Valerian began a persecution of those who followed Christ, and his strategy for stamping out this religion was to eliminate the hierarchy, expecting laymen and those in lower orders to fall away quickly. When he had Pope Stephen killed, Archdeacon Sixtus willingly became his successor, knowing that he would not long survive. Pope Sixtus (II) made his gifted student the new archdeacon, responsible, along with the other six deacons of the city, for the care of widows and orphans and the keeping of the church treasury which was used for their care.

When the pope was very shortly arrested and led away to be killed, Laurence tried in vain to accompany him so that he, too, could share in the fate of those who were sacrificing their lives for Christ’s sake. The pope assured Laurence that he would soon follow in his footsteps and that he should make the necessary preparations.

Laurence’s life was spared at this time, perhaps because of the other evil desire which the Emperor and other public officials had – that of greed and envy of the Church’s wealth. The archdeacon was brought before the prefect of the city, who spoke to him in falsely ingratiating terms. According to the report of the 4th century poet Prudentius, the prefect assured Laurence that he would not be subjected to cruelty, that all he wanted was some of the Church’s treasure for the upkeep of the Emperor’s forces. He had heard that Christians were to “render unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s” and this need for some of the wealth of the Christians for the good of the Empire was surely understandable.

Having interpreted Pope Sixtus’ admonition to “make the necessary preparations” as a directive to protect the charitable contributions of the Church, Laurence had already disposed of a good amount of the Church’s money which he gave to the poor and needy. He now asked for three days to prepare to comply with the prefect’s wishes. During those three days, Laurence gathered together all those whom the Church had been caring for – the blind, the lame, the elderly, the orphans – and he brought them to the prefect. When the outraged official demanded to know the meaning of all this, Laurence replied that he had brought him the “treasure” of the Church. He preached to him of the folly of worshiping false idols and being a slave to greed and avarice.

For his supposed insolence, Laurence was tortured by being roasted on a gridiron, which he bore valiantly, knowing that he would soon join his holy father Sixtus in martyrdom. He prayed fervently for the conversion of the Romans. As his earthly life came to an end, Laurence’s prayer began to be answered immediately. Several senators who witnessed his martyrdom were so moved by the truth of his words and by his courage that they soon sought baptism, and many others followed. A little more than fifty years later, the Emperor St. Constantine made Christianity the religion of the Empire and built a basilica over the tomb of St. Laurence, whose faithfulness had helped to bring about this miracle of conversion.

May we follow the good example of St. Laurence in recognizing God’s true “treasures”, may we boldly and faithfully confess Christ, and may we ask for the intercessions of St. Laurence for all who are in need of conversion.

Feast day ~ August 5  

We are reminded many times in Holy Scripture and in the witness of the saints that the Christian way of life is for all people and that God makes no distinctions among his children. There is neither rich nor poor, high or low estate, “neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for [we] are all one in Christ Jesus.” [Galatians 3:28]

At the top of the social spectrum, we find an example of sainthood in St. Oswald, King of Northumbria. With a high social position comes honor and power, but also a greater chance of rivalry, betrayal and assassination. This happened to Oswald’s father, King Ethelfrith, who was killed by rivals and was succeeded by his brother-in-law, Edwin, in 616.

Oswald fled to safety among the Scots. There he discovered the peace and tranquility of St. Columba’s monastery on the island of Iona. Through the example and teaching of the monks, Oswald was converted from paganism to Christianity, was baptized, and became a devout follower of Christ.

When his uncle Edwin died in 633, Oswald returned to Northumbria and was crowned king. The new king continued to be plagued by warring neighbors, but eventually was able to establish peace. He wished also for spiritual peace for the people of Northumbria and so sent to Iona requesting monks to come and preach the faith in his land.

After the first monk who had been sent returned to Iona quickly with dismal reports, the Irish monk, Aidan, was chosen and was made a bishop for this work. His perseverance resulted in genuine conversions among the king’s subjects.

Before Bishop Aidan gained sufficient proficiency in the English language, King Oswald went with him as he traveled about teaching, and the king acted as translator, ensuring that the people clearly understood the precepts of the faith.

King Oswald gave Bishop Aidan an island in this land, and the great monastery of Lindisfarne was established, soon flourishing with the vocations of Northumbrian men. The king also built churches for the people, and through his example – and without coercion – many of his subjects gave up the old life and became Christians.

Oswald was a true Christian ruler. Unlike most of his predecessors, he treated his subjects with fairness and generosity, being especially attentive to the needs of the poor. One story is told of a Paschal meal which he was sharing with Bishop Aidan. An attendant came to tell him that there was a crowd of poor people outside asking for assistance. The king sent his meal – a large silver tray laden with meat – to the people outside, providing them with food and silver that he ordered to be broken up and distributed among them. The bishop, wishing to acknowledge the king’s generosity, took his hand and expressed the desire that this generous hand would live forever. This figure of speech was remembered many years later, when the king’s relics remained incorrupt.

Unfortunately the temporal peace of Northumbria was not to last. After an 8-year reign, King Oswald was challenged by the violent pagan ruler of Mercia, Penda, who brought a great army of warriors against the king’s forces. Oswald was killed on August 5, 642, praying for the souls of the soldiers with his last breath. Penda had his body dismembered and his head placed on a pole as a sign of his victory. But, as the saintliness of King Oswald had been acknowledged by his people during his lifetime, they now recognized his remains as holy relics, and took them to Lindisfarne monastery to be kept in the chapel for veneration. The presence of these relics brought about miracles of healing and reconciliation. Many years later, during the Danish invasions when the Lindisfarne monks had to escape with their precious Gospel books and relics, St. Oswald’s head was placed in the same reliquary as the incorrupt body of St. Cuthbert and eventually buried in Durham Cathedral, where these relics remain today. We honor St. Oswald on his heavenly birthday, August 5.

All kings shall fall down before him; all nations shall do him service. [Psalm 72:11]