St. Agnes (Memorial)

January 21,2004

by Rev. Herbert Nichols

St. Agnes was a young girl about 14 years old. She refused to consent to an arranged marriage as was custom in the day; because her betrothed was not Christian. As a result she was martyred in a rather gruesome fashion by having her throat pierced.

In the Office of Readings for today St. Ambrose writes that a teen age child boy or girl will often cry over the slightest rejection but Agnes courageously endured chains and torture for the love of Jesus. St. Paul says: God chose one of the weak creatures of the world and made her strong in giving witness to Him.

The courage of Agnes should remind us that Christian discipleship is not just ephemeral enthusiasm but commands a way of life as we struggle to live a holy life in this world and for this world.

We can apply the example of God’s grace at work in St. Agnes to ourselves. We all know how tense we feel when pulled over for a speeding violation. Imagine this young girl confronted with the machinery of state torture and she does not flinch.

For us today, Christian maturity is not a burst of enthusiasm but sustained gospel living day in and day out. Effective witness is less the dramatic act of charity or a brilliant homily than the constant and continuing work of following the example of Christ.

The measure of discipleship is found not in feeling but in faithfulness. St. Agnes shows us what we can do and what we can endure when we open ourselves to the Holy Spirit, which is the Spirit of the living Christ burning within us.

Agnes showed her faith by how she lived and how she died. We can at least show our faith by how we live.