# Verified against Divinum Officium (Monastic Tridentinum 1617), live
# prayMatutinum query (2026-08-17). Day 8, "In Octava S. Laurentii," is its
# own distinct Duplex-rank commemoration of Lawrence (not a plain octave-
# continuation day), with a fuller 12-lesson office rather than the lesser-
# rank 3-lesson form the other days use -- all 12 collapsed into one
# continuous reading per project convention. Days 6 (Aug 15) and 7 (Aug 16)
# have no Lawrence-specific reading at all: those days belong entirely to the
# Assumption's own feast and octave instead (see assumption-octave-day-2.yml,
# sourced from what a naive query for "Lawrence day 7" actually returned). The
# source's own English translation is used as-is, including gaps in its own
# punctuation (some older "oct"/"bmv"-suffixed variant files drop question
# marks entirely in places) -- not corrected here, since guessing where they
# belong isn't the same class of fix as an isolated single-character typo.
id: st-lawrence-octave-day-8
source: "De libro Ecclesiástici"
text:
  la: |
    De libro Ecclesiástici Sir 51:1-3 1 Confitébor tibi, Dómine, Rex, et collaudábo te Deum Salvatórem meum. 2 Confitébor nómini tuo: quóniam adjútor et protéctor factus es mihi, 3 Et liberásti corpus meum a perditióne, a láqueo linguæ iníquæ et a lábiis operántium mendácium, et in conspéctu astántium factus es mihi adjútor.

    Sir 51:4-7 4 Et liberásti me secúndum multitúdinem misericórdiæ nóminis tui a rugiéntibus, præparátis ad escam: 5 De mánibus quæréntium ánimam meam, et de portis tribulatiónum, quæ circumdedérunt me; 6 A pressúra flammæ, quæ circúmdedit me, et in médio ignis non sum æstuáta;

    Sir 51:8-13 8 Laudábit usque ad mortem ánima mea Dóminum, 9 Et vita mea appropínquans erat in inférno deórsum. 10 Circumdedérunt me úndique, et non erat qui adjuváret. Respíciens eram ad adjutórium hóminum, et non erat. 11 Memorátus sum misericórdiæ tuæ, Dómine, et operatiónis tuæ, quæ a sǽculo sunt: 12 Quóniam éruis sustinéntes te, Dómine, et líberas eos de mánibus géntium. 13 Exaltásti super terram habitatiónem meam, et pro morte defluénte deprecátus sum.

    Sir 51:14-17 14 Invocávi Dóminum, Patrem Dómini mei, ut non derelínquat me in die tribulatiónis meæ, et in témpore superbórum, sine adjutório. 15 Laudábo nomen tuum assídue, et collaudábo illud in confessióne, et exaudíta est orátio mea. 16 Et liberásti me de perditióne, et eripuísti me de témpore iníquo. 17 Proptérea confitébor, et laudem dicam tibi, et benedícam nómini Dómini.

    Ex Tractatu sancti Augustíni Epíscopi in Joánnem. Tractatus 27. in fine. Certi sumus, fratres, quia omnes, qui sumus in corpore Domini, et manemus in illo, ut et ipse maneat in nobis, in hoc sæculo necesse habemus usque in finem inter malos vivere; non inter illos dico malos, qui blasphemant Christum; raro enim jam inveniuntur, qui lingua blasphemant, sed multi, qui vita. Necesse est ergo, ut inter illos usque in finem vivamus. Sed quid est quod ait, Qui manet in me, et ego in illo? Quid, nisi quod Martyres audiebant: Qui perseveraverit usque in finem, hic salvus erit?

    Quomodo mansit in illo sanctus Laurentius, cujus hodie festum diem celebramus? Mansit usque ad tentationem, mansit usque ad tyrannicam interrogationem, mansit usque ad acerrimam comminationem, mansit usque ad peremptionem. Parum est: usque ad immanem excruciationem mansit. Non enim occisus est cito, sed cruciatus est in igne. Diu vivere permissus est: immo non diu vivere permissus est, sed tarde mori compulsus est.

    In illa ergo longa morte, in illis tormentis, quia bene manducaverat, et bene biberat, tamquam illa esca saginatus, et illo calice ebrius, tormenta non sensit. Dixerat autem illi Xystus Martyr sanctus, cujus diem quinto abhinc retro die celebravimus: Noli merere fili: (episcopus enim erat ille, iste diaconus) noli merere, inquit, sequeris me post triduum.

    Triduum autem dixit medium inter diem passionis sancti Xysti, et diem hodiernam passionis sancti Laurentii. Triduum est medium. Oconsolatio! Non ait, Noli merere fili, desinet persecutio, et securus eris: sed, Noli merere: quo ego præcedo, tu sequeris; nec consecutio tua differtur. Triduum medium erit, et mecum eris. Accepit oraculum, vicit diabolum, pervenit ad triumphum.

    Léctio sancti Evangélii secúndum Joánnem. Joannes 12:24-28 In illo témpore: Dixit Jesus discipulis suis: Amen, amen dico vobis, nisi granum frumenti cadens in terram, mortuum fuerit; ipsum solum manet. Et réliqua. Homilia sancti Joannis Chrysostomi. Homilia 66. in Joánnem. Dulcis præsens vita est, et multæ plena voluptatis, non tamen omnibus, sed iis tantum, qui illi sunt affixi. Quod si quis in cælum suspexerit, et quæ ibi præclara sunt, contemplatus fuerit, statim hanc contemnet, ac nullius pretii existimabit. Nam et corporum pulchritudo, quoad pulchrius non deprehenditur, in admiratione habetur: cum vero aliud præstantius apparuerit, illa prior despicitur.

    Quod si illam pulchritudinem étiam nos intueri voluerimus, et cælestis regni speciem considerare, confestim nos hujus sæculi vinculis dissolvemus. Vinculum namque est terrenarum rerum affectio: ad cujus dissolutionem ut nos induceret Christus, quid dicat, attende. Qui amat animam suam, perdet eam: et qui odit animam suam in hoc mundo, in vitam ætérnam custodit eam.

    Enigmati simile hoc dictum videtur: non tamen ita est, immo vero præcipuæ sapientiæ plenum. Et quomodo qui amat animam suam, perdet eam? Qui absurdis ejus cupiditatibus obtemperat, qui præter debitum ei indulget: quemadmodum e contrario, qui odit eam in hoc mundo, custodit eam: hoc est, qui non paret ei, cum noxia jubet.

    Et non dixit: Qui non paret, sed, Qui odit. Sicuti enim quos odio habemus,'ne vocem quidem audire, nec vultum eorum videre æquo animo patimur: ita et animæ, si quid præter Dei voluntatem nobis imperat, vehementer aversari oportet. Cum enim jam de morte ad eos verba facturus esset, de morte videlicet sua, et prævideret eorum tristitiam et exanimationem, per excessum locutus est, inquiens: Quid dico, si mortem meam generose non feretis? Nisi vos ipsi moriamini, nullum vos sequetur emolumentum.
  en: |
    Lesson from the book of Ecclesiasticus Sir 51:1-3 1 A prayer of Jesus the son of Sirach. I will give glory to thee, O Lord, O King, and I will praise thee, O God my Saviour. 2 I will give glory to thy name: for thou hast been a helper and protector to me. 3 And hast preserved my body from destruction, from the snare of an unjust tongue, and from the lips of them that forge lies, and in the sight of them that stood by, thou hast been my helper.

    Sir 51:4-7 4 And thou hast delivered me, according to the multitude of the mercy of thy name, from them that did roar, prepared to devour. 5 Out of the hands of them that sought my life, and from the gates of afflictions, which compassed me about: 6 From the oppression of the flame which surrounded me, and in the midst of the fire I was not burnt.

    Sir 51:8-13 8 My soul shall praise the Lord even to death. 9 And my life was drawing near to hell beneath. 10 They compassed me on every side, and there was no one that would help me. Ilooked for the succour of men, and there was none. 11 I remembered thy mercy, O Lord, and thy works, which are from the beginning of the world. 12 How thou deliverest them that wait for thee, O Lord, and savest them out of the hands of the nations. 13 Thou hast exalted my dwelling place upon the earth and I have prayed for death to pass away.

    Sir 51:14-17 14 I called upon the Lord, the father of my Lord, that he would not leave me in the day of my trouble, and in the time of the proud without help. 15 I will praise thy name continually, and will praise it with thanksgiving, and my prayer was heard. 16 And thou hast saved me from destruction, and hast delivered me from the evil time. 17 Therefore I will give thanks, and praise thee, and bless the name of the Lord.

    From one of the Tracts upon John, written by St. Augustine, Bishop of Hippo. 21th. Brethren, we know that all we who are in the body of the Lord, and abide in Him that He also may abide in us, must needs in this world live even unto the end among the wicked; by the wicked I mean not such as blaspheme Christ, for it is now but few who are found who blaspheme Him with their tongue, but many there be who do it by their lives. Among such we must needs live, even unto the end. But what is it that He said, He that abideth in Me and I in him? John xv. 5. Is it not that whereunto the Martyrs gave ear, He that endureth to the end shall be saved? Matth. x. 22.

    In what wise abode in Him the holy Lawrence whose Feast-day we keep to-day? He abode in Him until trial came; he abode in Him until He was browbeaten by the tyrant; he abode in Him until his fearful sentence came; he abode in Him even unto death. That is saying but a little of him; he abode in Him even in savage torture. He was not slain quickly, but tortured in the fire. He was allowed to remain long alive, and yet not allowed to remain long alive, but slowly put to death.

    During that long death, in all that agony, since he had well eaten and well drunk, filled with that Food, and drunken with that Cup, he felt not the torture. Nor the holy Martyr Xystus, whose day we kept five days ago, had said unto him: Be not sorrowful, my son (for he was the Bishop and Lawrence the Deacon,) be not sorrowful, said he, yet three days and thou shalt follow me.

    These three days of which he spake were the three clear days which elapse between the day of the passion of holy Xystus, and this day, the day of the passion of holy Lawrence. The three days are those between. Owhat a strange comfort! He saith not: Be not sorrowful, my son; the persecution will come to an end, and thou wilt be safe, but Be not sorrowful, whither I go, thither shalt thou follow me, and the time will not be long. Three clear days shall pass, and then thou shalt be with me. Lawrence received the prophecy, conquered the devil, and entered into his triumph.

    From the Holy Gospel according to John John 12:24-28 At that time: Jesus said unto His disciples: Amen, Amen, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone. And so on. Homily by St. John Chrysostom, Patriarch of Constantinople. 66th on John. This present life is sweet, and full of many pleasures, not indeed for all, but for those who love it. But if one should have cast his looks heavenward, and studied the excellent things that are there, he will forthwith despise this present life and hold it of no moment. So is bodily comeliness esteemed, only as long as we see none fairer, but as soon as a comelier appeareth, the first is held cheap.

    And thus if we will look at the beauty above, and study the loveliness of the kingdom in heaven, we shall forthwith loose the ties that bind us to this world. The ties that bind us to this world are the love of earthly things. Listen to what Christ saith, to draw us to loosen these ties. He that loveth his life shall lose it, and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.

    This hath the sound of a puzzle, and yet it is full of the most excellent wisdom. How shall he that loveth his life lose it? He shall lose it by yielding to its senseless lusts, by indulging any of its lusts more than he ought. Whereas he that hateth his life in this world, shall keep it unto life eternal, by not obeying it when it demandeth things hurtful.

    Christ saith not, He that obeyeth it not, but, He that hateth it. For even as we cannot bear to hear the voice or see the face of them whom we hate, so doth it behove us to turn angrily away from our own life, if it demand from us anything contrary to the will of God. He was about to speak to them touching death, even His Own death, and He foresaw their grief and faintness, and spake in strong expressions, as though He said: What shall I say, if ye take not My death bravely? Unless ye also die, ye shall gain no profit.
responsory:
  la: |
    ℟. Levíta Lauréntius bonum opus operátus est, qui per signum crucis cæcos illuminávit, * Et thesáuros Ecclésiæ dedit paupéribus. ℣. Dispérsit, dedit paupéribus: justítia ejus manet in sǽculum sǽculi. ℟. Et thesáuros Ecclésiæ dedit paupéribus.
  en: |
    ℟. The Levite Lawrence wrought a good work, in that with the sign of the Cross he gave sight to the blind, * And dispersed among the needy the riches of the Church. ℣. He hath dispersed, he hath given to the poor his righteousness endureth forever. ℟. And dispersed among the needy the riches of the Church.
status:
  la: verified
  en: verified
