Perfect Breasts

Seeing faith as more precious than everything

02/05/2022

Lk 9:23-26 Jesus said to all, "If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. What profit is there for one to gain the whole world yet lose or forfeit himself? Whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels."

Have you had breast cancer, or known someone who has? As a priest I have known lots of women who have faced this enormous challenge, and I am awed at their fortitude, their fight, and their faith. I am praying daily for those currently fighting breast cancer, for those who have conquered and overcome it, and grateful for those who have passed and now pray for us from Paradise. Even though October is officially breast cancer awareness month, I believe February 5 should also mark a memorable day in the fight against breast cancer. Why? Well, today is the feast day of St. Agatha, and she is the patron saint of those with breast cancer. Let me share a little of her story and why she is the patron of breast cancer patients.

Agatha, whose name means “good” in Greek, was born in 231 in Catania, Sicily. As a 15 year old girl from an affluent family, Agatha made a vow of virginity and dedicated herself completely to Christ. He was her spouse. A Roman prefect named Quintianus tried to win her love, but to no avail. Who can compete with Christ? After repeated attempts to make her fall in love with him, he turned her over to the government officials who were persecuting Christians during those years under Emperor Decius. Quintianus thought the little girl would be frightened by the tortures and run back into his arms, but he sorely underestimated the depth of her faith and love.

Agatha was imprisoned, stretched on a rack to be tortured with hooks, burned with torches, and whipped. But none of this deterred her from her devotion to Christ, her Beloved. One of the most gruesome devices to inflict pain was the incision of her breasts. And that is why she is the patron saint of those fighting breast cancer and often suffer a single or double mastectomy. Agatha endured a double mastectomy without anesthesia. Agatha was next sentenced to be burned at the stake but was saved by a providential earthquake. Hence, she is also the patron saint of earthquakes.

She was finally martyred but it is unclear exactly how. I especially love how she is listed among the great saints in the First Eucharistic Prayer, where the priest prays: “John the Baptist, Stephen, Matthias, Barnabas, Ignatius, Alexander, Marcellinus, Peter, Felicity, Perpetua, Agatha, Lucy, Agnes, Cecilia, Anastasia.” Agatha certainly deserves to be ranked among their number, remembered in heaven and earth, and we should have recourse to her whenever face the illness of breast cancer.

The Catholic Church has a curious sense of whom she selects to be a patron saint. That is, saints are not the patrons of their successes in life, but rather of their sufferings, and even their apparent failures, defeats, and even death. Agatha, for example, is praised in heaven for her persecutions here on earth, like losing her breasts. In the Christian calculation of life, the moment of utter failure turns out to be the shining moment of a saints triumph. We need look no further than the greatest saint of all, Jesus Christ. The moment of his agony, humiliation, and abandonment on the Cross was precisely the moment of his greatest victory. And that is why Catholics venerate crucifixes and hang them in classroom, hospitals and homes, and of course, most proudly in churches.

And that is what the saints invite us to see in our own lives, like Agatha helps women to see their battle with cancer in the light of faith. In other words, the real victory is not in keeping your breasts. The real triumph is not even in beating cancer. The ultimate conquest is to never lose your faith, but to cling to Christ resolutely. If you do, then whatever you suffer here on earth will become your most cherished success in heaven. Breast cancer is like the prefect Quintianus and women who suffer breast cancer are like St. Agatha. He may take away your breasts but don’t let him take away your beliefs and love for the Lord.

Do you remember that scene in the movie “Princess Bride” when Princess Buttercup is about to stab herself in her chest? The Dread Pirate Roberts warns her: “There is a shortage of perfect breasts in the world, it would be a pity to damage yours.” But St. Agatha reminds us today there is something even more precious than perfect breasts.

Praised be Jesus Christ!