Saturday, January 18, 2014

Which Saint Was Broiled

My brother-in-law emailed immediately! He knew just which saint was grilled. St. Lawrence! I decided to look him up in my moldy old multi-volume BUTLER'S LIVES OF THE SAINTS, which as you know contains all the most boring facts about saints. Well, the entry on St. Lawrence (Laurence, they spell it) has some spicy details for a change. And forgive me, for they are horrific and gory, though I spare you the worst. You can stop reading! While they were grilling poor St. Laurence on the grill, "His face appeared... to be surrounded with a beautiful, extraordinary light, and his broiled body to exhale a sweet agreeable smell... [He said] with a cheerful and smiling countenance, 'Let my body be now turned; one side is broiled enough.'" (Or as my brother-in-law put it in his email, "Turn me over, I'm done.") Well, that was horrible, I'm sorry.