Memorial of Saint Agnes

There is, probably, no more appropriate psalm for today’s memorial of Saint Agnes than Psalm 40, which the liturgy presents us with for reflection:

Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will.

Sacrifice or oblation you wished not,
    but ears open to obedience you gave me.
Burnt offerings or sin-offerings you sought not;
    then said I, “Behold I come.”

The verse to the alleluia from 2 Timothy 1: 10 applies to our saint perfectly as well:

Our Savior Jesus Christ has destroyed death
and brought life to light through the Gospel.

I live only one hour from Rome now, but when I used to live in the outskirts of the Eternal City, many times I visited Saint Agnes in Piazza Navona, whose relic (her skull) is in the 17^th century Baroque church that faces the square. It is the place where Romans watched the games as the square was the ‘competition arena’ in the first century. Agnes is one of the many beautiful “things” that embellish the long piazza. In the beautiful church, her relics remind us of her greatness of character and perfect love, which she showed through martyrdom at an early age. Such strong testimony, even today, continues to speak to us about the maturity of her theological virtues.

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI said in 2012: “St Agnes is one of the famous Roman maidens who demonstrated the genuine beauty of faith in Christ and of friendship with him. Her double description as Virgin and Martyr refers to the totality of the dimensions of holiness” …

Then, he added: “In Agnes’ martyrdom, which she courageously embraced in the Stadium of Domitian, the beauty of belonging to Christ without hesitation and of entrusting ourselves to him shines out for ever. Still today, for anyone strolling in Piazza Navona, the Saint’s statue, high up on the pediment of the Church of Sant’Agnese in Agone, reminds us that this City of ours is also founded on friendship with Christ and on the witness to his Gospel borne by many of his sons and daughters”.

I find no better words to describe Agnes’ courage than those of Saint Ambrose, which the liturgy of the hours provides on her memorial:

“Today is the birthday of a virgin; let us imitate her purity. It is the birthday of a martyr; let us offer ourselves in sacrifice. It is the birthday of Saint Agnes, who is said to have suffered martyrdom at the age of twelve. The cruelty that did not spare her youth shows all the more clearly the power of faith in finding one so young to bear it witness.

There was little or no room in that small body for a wound. Though she could scarcely receive the blow, she could rise superior to it. Girls of her age cannot bear even their parents’ frowns and pricked by a needle, weep as for a serious wound. Yet she shows no fear of the blood-stained hands of her executioners. She stands undaunted by heavy, clanking chains. She offers her whole body to be put to the sword by fierce soldiers. She is too young to know of death yet is ready to face it. Dragged against her will to the altars, she stretches out her hands to the Lord in the midst of the flames, making the triumphant sign of Christ the victor on the altars of sacrilege. She puts her neck and hands in iron chains, but no chain can hold fast her tiny limbs.

A new kind of martyrdom! Too young to be punished, yet old enough for a martyr’s crown; unfitted for the contest, yet effortless in victory, she shows herself a master in valour despite the handicap of youth. As a bride she would not be hastening to join her husband with the same joy she shows as a virgin on her way to punishment, crowned not with flowers but with holiness of life, adorned not with braided hair but with Christ himself”.

Agnes’ testimony speaks for itself, and it is a great source of inspiration for anyone willing to live her or his Christian faith seriously. May this young virgin and martyr continue to inspire us.

[Readings: Heb 7:25-8:6; Ps 40:7-8a, 8b-9, 10, 12; Mk 3:7-12]