Saint Lawrence of Brindisi

Friday, July 21, 2023

Saint Lawrence of Brindisi was a priest and was named a Doctor of the Church by Pope Saint John XXIII in 1959. Born in 1559 into a religious family, Julius Caesar Russo joined the Capuchin Order of the Franciscans as a teenager and took the name Lawrence. In 1582, he was ordained a priest. He was blessed with many intellectual gifts, which he used to serve the Lord and others. He learned the biblical languages – Greek, Hebrew, Latin, and Syriac, and was so well versed in scripture, he gave the appearance of having memorized the entire Bible. He even earned the esteem of Jewish scholars because of his profound understanding of rabbinic texts. Besides his native language of Italian, Saint Lawrence also spoke Spanish and German.

He was dedicated to preserving and restoring peace, so the Holy Father and secular princes with various diplomatic missions geared toward settling controversies among Christian states and between these states and the surging Ottoman Empire asked for Saint Lawrence’s assistance. His longing for peace, however, did not cloud his understanding of the right to self-defense or his love of Christian Europe. He was the chaplain of a Christian army, assembled in Germany against the Turks. Saint Lawrence then led the troops into battle with his crucifix held high, and the German army’s victory was credited to Saint Lawrence due to his intercession and inspiring example.

He died at age 60 on his birthday and was canonized in 1881. Saint Lawrence of Brindisi, pray for us.