On this very day in the year 304 AD, Roman officials furiously beheaded the thirteen-year old Agnes after all their attempts to burn her alive had failed. What could turn the civilized, well-bred, erudite nobility of ancient Rome into a bloodthirsty mob? What could make senators, philosophers, and orators stop at nothing to put a young girl to a brutal death? Fear. To the Roman elite, this girl was dangerous. She was dangerous precisely because she reminded the world that absolutely no power could control or manipulate her. Saint Agnes was unconquerable.
Her secret was her purity—a purity in her actions that was born from the deepest desire of her heart. Purity means that something is simple and unmixed. Agnes’s heart had only a single love: Jesus Christ. It was a pure love without any hidden or mixed motives. Christ was not just a part of her life—he was the entirety of her life. Christ was the point around which everything else revolved. She was a devoted daughter because of her love for Christ. She was an obedient citizen because of her love for Christ. But no lesser love could ever take the deepest place in her heart.
We become attached to what we love. The things of this world are uncertain. If we bind our hearts to what is in this world, then we bind ourselves to uncertainties that can be controlled by others. If we bind our hearts to these uncertainties, then we, too, can be controlled. Agnes’s pure heart was given only to Christ, who “has conquered the world” (John 16:33), and so the world had no pressure point on her. The things of this world are indeed good, but there is only one way that they can be loved without any risk of manipulation: our love for Christ must exclusively set all our other loves and desires in order.
When Agnes refused to marry, she was offered money and the prospect of a respected and pleasurable life. Although life is more loveable than death, Agnes loved Jesus Christ first and foremost, and thus she “did not cling to life even in the face of death” (Rev 12:11). Her family and friends abandoned her, but Agnes rejoiced because she became an image of Christ who was also abandoned. She was dragged through the streets of Rome, but Agnes rejoiced to be like Christ who was also stripped and mocked. Agnes rejoiced when she was unjustly condemned to death because she became like Christ who was unjustly condemned.
Because of the purity of her love, nothing could stop her from running into the arms of her Beloved. Whether presented with life or death, she had chosen Christ with a love unconquerable. Nothing could derail her will. Nothing could stain the purity of her heart. To the Roman elite, who convinced themselves that their power and will were supreme, this young girl was dangerous. With nothing but a sigh of love, Agnes conquered the world and was joyfully welcomed in triumph by her divine Spouse, the very Fount of Pure Love.
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Photo by Steve Kamerman (CC BY-SA 4.0)
