St Laurentius of Rome (225-258) is the best-known bearer of the name Laurentius. He was one of the seven deacons in the city of Rome and was responsible for finances and social work. When the Roman bishop Sixtus II was arrested and beheaded under the Christian persecutor Emperor Valerian (200-260), Laurentius was distraught that he was not considered worthy of sharing this death. Sixtus comforted him with the promise that he would succeed him in three days and instructed him to distribute the church treasury to the suffering and the poor.

Emperor Valerian laid claim to these treasures. Laurentius asked for three days to think it over and distributed the goods during this period. The enraged Valerian had Laurentius tortured and finally ordered him to be slowly martyred over fire on a gridiron. Even in these terrible tortures, he retained his sense of humour and teased the executioner to turn him over on the fire, as the roast was already cooked on one side.
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