November 11
Saints of the Day...and Events

St. Martin of Tours, 316-397, Martin the Merciful; The Glory of Gaul
One of the most popular saints who gave half of his cloak to a beggar, and he was Christ!... from a Cavalry officer he became a soldier of Christ, a hermit, a Bishop, a Saint.

    A soldier conscientious objector who wanted to be a monk; a monk who was maneuvered into being a bishop; a bishop who fought paganism as well as pleaded for mercy to heretics—such was Martin of Tours, one of the most popular of saints and one of the first not to be a martyr.

    He was born of pagan parents in what is now Hungary and was raised in Italy. The son of a veteran, he was forced to serve in the army against his will at the age of 15. Cavalry officer of the Caesar, and assigned to garrison duty in Gaul, France.
    He became a Christian catechumen and was baptized at 18. It was said that he lived more like a monk than a soldier.
    At 23 he refused a war bounty from Julian Caesar with the words, "I have served you as a soldier; now let me serve Christ. Give the bounty to those who are going to fight. But I am a soldier of Christ and it is not lawful for me to fight." After great difficulties, he was discharged and went to be a disciple of Saint Hilary at Poitiers.

    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. He left the military of the Caesar and joined the army of Christ.
    Yes, Jesus says: Whatsoever you do to the least of my brothers you do unto me... unto Jesus Himself. You may read it in Matthew 25:31-46, the Last judgment of God, the reason for what a Christian or Jew or will be judged. Salvation by Faith?... by Works?:
   
    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, at one point even by the order of the Arian bishop. Learning that the Arians had gained the upper hand in Gaul and exiled Saint Hilary, Martin fled to the island of Gallinaria (modern Isola d'Albenga).

    He became a hermit for ten years in the area now known as Ligugé. A reputation for holiness attracted other monks, and they formed what would become the Benedictine abbey of Ligugé.
    Preached and evangelized 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; Martin continued to win converts. He destroyed old temples, and built churches on the land.

    When the bishop of Tours, France, died in 371, Martin was the immediate choice to replace him. Martin declined... when he arrived in the city, he was declared bishop by popular acclamation, consecrated on 4 July 372.

    Moved to a hermit's cell near Tours. Other monks joined him, and a new house, Marmoutier, soon formed. Rarely left his monastery or see city, but sometimes went to Trier to plead with the emperor for his city, his church, or his parishioners. Once when he went to ask for 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. He was the first non-martyr to receive the cultus of a saint.

More Information: Martin of Tours
Born 316 at Upper Pannonia (in modern Hungary)

Died 8 November 397 at Candes, Tours, France of natural causes; by his request, he was buried in the Cemetery of the Poor on 11 November 397; 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

Gallery of images of Saint Martin [15 images, 354 kb]

Events of November 11 - Saints of November 11: