Laurence of Rome, Deacon and Martyr, 258

The Collect:

Rite I:
Almighty God, by whose grace and power thy servant Laurence didst triumph over suffering and didst despise death: Grant that we may be steadfast in service to the poor and outcast, and may share with him in the joys of thine everlasting kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Rite II:
Almighty God, by whose grace and power your servant Laurence triumphed over suffering and despised death: Grant that we may be steadfast in service to the poor and outcast, and may share with him in the joys of your everlasting kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

First Lesson: Daniel 3:19–27

¹⁹Then Nebuchadnezzar was so filled with rage against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego that his face was distorted. He ordered the furnace to be heated up seven times more than was customary, ²⁰and ordered some of the strongest guards in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and to throw them into the furnace of blazing fire. ²¹So the men were bound, still wearing their tunics, their trousers,their hats, and their other garments, and they were thrown into the furnace of blazing fire. ²²Because the king’s command was urgent and the furnace was so overheated, the raging flames killed the men who lifted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. 23But the three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down, bound, into the furnace of blazing fire.

²⁴Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished and rose up quickly. He said to his counsellors, ‘Was it not three men that we threw bound into the fire?’ They answered the king, ‘True, O king.’ ²⁵He replied, ‘But I see four men unbound, walking in the middle of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the fourth has the appearance of a god.’ ²⁶Nebuchadnezzar then approached the door of the furnace of blazing fire and said, ‘Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!’ So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out from the fire. ²⁷And the satraps, the prefects, the governors, and the king’s counsellors gathered together and saw that the fire had not had any power over the bodies of those men; the hair of their heads was not singed, their tunics were not harmed, and not even the smell of fire came from them.

Psalm: Psalm 126

¹ When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, *
       then were we like those who dream.
² Then was our mouth filled with laughter, *
       and our tongue with shouts of joy.
³ Then they said among the nations, *
       “The Lord has done great things for them.”
⁴ The Lord has done great things for us, *
       and we are glad indeed.
⁵ Restore our fortunes, O Lord, *
       like the watercourses of the Negev.
⁶ Those who sowed with tears *
       will reap with songs of joy.
⁷ Those who go out weeping, carrying the seed, *
       will come again with joy, shouldering their sheaves.

Gospel: John 12:24-26

²⁴Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.²⁵Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. ²⁶Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honour.

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