Today is the feast of the First Martyrs of the Church of Rome. So many whose names we don't even know, who shed their blood or gave their bodies to be burned in the persecutions of the first century. We honor today these unknown martyrs whose sacrifice in Christ, along with that of the apostles, changed forever the great "city of the Gentiles." May they help us to engage the dangers and the drama of our own time, placing our trust in Jesus who is the same, yesterday, today, and forever.
The prayer of today's liturgy:
O God, who consecrated
the abundant first fruits of the Roman Church
by the blood of the Martyrs,
grant, we pray, that with firm courage
we may together draw strength from so great a struggle
and ever rejoice at the triumph of faithful love.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
– Amen.
