The Festival of St. Olaf II, King and Martyr
Posted on July 29, 2025 by under
Scripture: St. Matthew 10:26-32 (NKJV)
10:26 Therefore do not fear them. For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known.
27 “Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops. 28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. 30 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.
32 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven.”
Devotion
King Olaf II was raised as a pagan and was a Viking warrior until his conversion and baptism. After he became a Christian, he was influential in bringing Christianity to Norway. As king, he used his power and authority to bring in missionaries from England to help bring the Word of God to Norway. However, when King Canute promised the Norwegian nobles that he would rule more indirectly than King Olaf, Olaf was forced to flee to Russia. He returned to reclaim his kingship, but was killed in the Battle of Stiklestad in 1030.
Our Lord, in the reading for today, tells His Apostles just before He sends them out to “the lost sheep of the house of Israel” to “not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.” Our Lord is telling them to have faith above all in Him. He is the One who protects and guards us from all evil. He is the One who allows His Word to be spoken in the light and preached on the housetops. It was the Word preached by the missionaries whom Olaf supported that brought Christianity to Norway.
Even though there were some who rejected that Word and drove him from his lands, Olaf did not fear returning to bring the light of the Gospel again. He lost his life in the effort, but Norway had received the Word and became a nation filled with those who clung in faith to Jesus.
Collect: O Lord, grant steadfastness in a faithful confession to those among the magistracy whom Thou hast gathered into Thy holy Church, and direct the hearts of the faithful to support them in their vocation; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Collect for the Sixth Sunday after Trinity Sunday
Lord of all power and might, Who art the Author and Giver of all good things: Graft in our hearts the love of Thy Name, increase in us true religion, nourish us with all goodness, and of Thy great mercy keep us in the same; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
