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The prized virtue of the servants of Christ

Today is Feb. 5, the memorial of St. Agatha.

We read at today’s Mass, “Brothers and sisters: In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood” (Heb 12:4).

In the Crypt Church of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, a place where I love saying Mass, there are five beautiful shrines dedicated to ancient martyrs. These altars, in honor of heroic women saints, are among the most beautiful in the entire basilica.

St. Agatha’s altar bears an inscription that reads, “Christian humility is far more distinguished than the wealth and pride of kings.” It was perfectly chosen, because Agatha’s most remarkable virtue is humility.

In the Acts of the Martyrdom of St. Agatha, the proconsul Quintian asked Agatha about her noble origins, saying, “If you claim to be free and noble, why do you show yourself to live and dress like a slave?” “Because I am a servant of Christ,” Agatha replied. Quintian hoped to shame her… but Agatha was happy to embrace simplicity, unwilling to surrender her humility even to save her own life.

Finding freedom in serving Christ

St. Agatha’s reply to Quintian exposes the irony of human pride: Those who reject Christ in pursuit of worldly freedom become slaves to sin. In contrast, her life reminds us that Christian humility is the path to ultimate freedom — freedom from fear, from selfish ambition, and from the false gods of this world who demand our devotion but offer no salvation.

Do we find our freedom in serving Christ, or are we still enslaved by the desires and fears of the world? Do we seek to assert our own will, or do we humbly trust in God’s plan? True humility is not passivity; it is the courage to place everything in God’s hands, as St. Agatha did, knowing that he alone grants true freedom.

Let us pray,

May the Virgin Martyr Saint Agatha implore your compassion for us, O Lord, we pray, for she found favor with you by the courage of her martyrdom and the merit of her chastity. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.