Nov 11 – Memorial for St. Martin of Tours, bishop
St. Martin (316-397) was born to pagan parents. His father was a Roman military officer and tribune. Martin was raised in Pavia, Italy, where he discovered Christianity and became a catechumen in his early teens. He joined the Roman imperia army at the age of 15, serving in a ceremonial unit that acts as the emperor’s bodyguard, and was rarely exposed to combat. He became a cavalry officer and was assigned to garrison duty in Gaul.
Trying to live his faith, he refused to let his servant wait on him. Once, while on horseback in Amiens in Gaul (modern France), he encountered a beggar. Having nothing to give but the clothes on his back, he cut his heavy officer’s cloak in half, and gave it to the beggar. Later, he had a vision of Christ wearing the cloak.
Martin was baptized into the Church at the age of 18. Just before a battle, Martin announced that his faith prohibited him from fighting. Charged with cowardice, he was jailed, and his superiors planned to put him in the front of the battle. However, the invaders sued for peace, the battle never occurred, and Martin was released from military service at Worms.
On a visit to Lombardy to see his parents, he was robbed in the mountains but managed to convert one of the thieves. At home, he found that his mother had converted, but his father had not. The area was strongly Arian, and openly hostile to Catholics. Martin was badly abused by the heretics, and at one point, even by the order of the Arian bishop. Learning that the Arians had gained the upper hand in Gaul and exiled St. Hilary of Poitiers, his spiritual teacher, Martin fled to the island of Gallinaria (modern Isola d’Albenga).
In 361, Martin learned that the emperor had authorized Hilary’s return, and Martin ran to him and became a hermit for ten years in the area now know as Ligugé. A reputation for holiness attracted other monks, and they formed what would become the Benedictine abbey of Ligugé. He preached and evangelised through the Gallic countryside. Many locals held strongly to the old beliefs, and tried to intimidate Martin by dressing as the old Roman gods and appearing to him at night, but Martin continued to win converts. He destroyed old temples, and built churches on the land.
When the bishop of Tours died in 371, Martin was the immediate choice to replace him. Martin declined, citing unworthiness. Rusticus, a wealthy citizen of Tours, claimed his wife was ill and asked for Martin. When he arrived in the city, he was declared bishop by popular acclamation, and was consecrated on Jul 4, 372.
He moved to a hermit’s cell near Tours. Other monks joined him and a new house, Marmoutier, soon formed. He rarely left his monastery, but sometimes went to Trier to plead with the emperor for his city, his church, or his parishioners. Once when he went to ask lenience for a condemned prisoner, an angel woke the emperor to tell him that Martin was waiting to see him; the prisoner was reprieved.
Martin himself was given to visions, but even his contemporaries sometimes ascribed them to his habit of lengthy fasts. An extensive biography of Martin was written by Sulpicius Severus. When he died, he was buried, at his request, in the Cemetery of the Poor. Martin was the first non-martyr to receive the cultus of saint. His relics rested in the basilica of Tours, a scene of pilgrimages and miracles until 1562, when the cathedral and relics were destroyed by militant Protestants. Some small fragments on his tomb were found during construction excavation in 1860.
St. Martin of Tours is patron against poverty, alcoholism, hotel-keepers, quartermasters, soldiers, among others.
Prayer to Continue to Fight for God
“Lord, if your people still have need of my services, I will not avoid the toil. Your will be done. I have fought the good fight long enough. Yet if you bid me continue to hold the battle line in defense of your camp, I will never beg to be excused from failing strength. I will do the work you entrust to me. While you command, I will fight beneath your banner.” – St Martin of Tours, Italian Soldier, Hermit, Bishop
- Patron Saint Index
Rm 16:3-9,16,22-27
Lk 16:9-15
“…God knows your hearts.”
I write this fresh from serving at the Youth Prayer Experience Retreat (PER) #2, which was held over a 3-day weekend at our centre. Together with 3 (at times 4) other members of my music ministry, we combined with the members of our youth and young adult ministry as a worship team and ministered to just over 30 retreatants (aged between 18 and 35 yrs of age).
Needless to say, it was an enriching, rejuvenating and spirit-filled retreat where we learned from each other as we navigated unfamiliar songs (each ministry has their own ‘bank’ of worship songs) and somehow, with limited practice time in between the talks, breaks and meals, pulled together as a unit to make sure that the environment/ambience we created was conducive for those participating to fully experience the healing graces of God.
And while I had previously served with the youth community, they had recently undergone a restructure and renaming. So, I relished the opportunity to reacquaint with some of their newer leaders, who ran the retreat with clockwork precision and ensured that everything was covered. From the logistics of dealing with participants and us service team members staying in, to the intricacies of meal/tea breaks with special dietary needs, and to last-minute changes requested by the retreat director. Each one handled their responsibilities with giving hearts and all were united in a common purpose – to love those they were serving and who they were serving with.
So despite the almost daily, regular hiccups and last-minute changes to the setlists as we were practicing, we all pulled together and set aside creative/musical differences and were happy to ‘give way’ to each other. What resulted was a harmony where voices and instruments all blended as one and we somehow navigated the intricacies of new melodies/lyrics – where most definitely, the Spirit led/guided us and we just flowed with each song.
Brothers and sisters, in our desire to serve, we might find ourselves getting caught up in the dynamics of personality/leadership tussles or disagreements and end up disillusioned or disappointed. Don’t get me wrong, I am all for open discussion and long sessions debating the pros and cons of things. However, when a final decision is made, it is inevitable that not all involved will be on board/aligned. How then do we ensure that we move forward together in unity to ensure the best is all that we give to Him? There was a phrase I heard during the retreat – to ‘put our head into our hearts’ – which led me to reflect on how much time we actually spend serving vs how much time we spend disagreeing/arguing/disentangling things in our various ministries.
For those of us who are in the corporate world, the general consensus is to just ‘toe the line’ and follow the leader. But when it comes to ministry, it may not be so straightforward. In my various deliberations of late, I have found the rosary a source of strength and comfort. I have also advised others to step away, say an ‘Our Father’ and three ‘Hail Mary’s and then see where that takes them. For if in our hearts, we cherish the presence of God and acknowledge that He resides there, then surely, through prayer, we will be led to make decisions that are rooted in His love.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Desmond Soon)
Prayer: Lord, help me to love you with all my being so that I can love others who I serve and work with.
Thanksgiving: Thank you Lord, for all the miracles of healing and the blessings you showered upon us at YPER #2.
OXYGEN 
Leave a comment