Saint Martin of Tours

An appropriate memorial to celebrate on this Veterans Day. I want to thank all of our veterans for their service to our country! In a special way we remember those veterans who paid the ultimate sacrifice. We keep them in our prayers, as well as those who continue to answer the call and serve in the military today. Saint Martin of Tours was a military person! He gave up the military life and was baptized. Afterwards, he founded a monastery where he lived the monastic life. Saint Martin was ordained a priest and chosen bishop of Tours. He provided an example of the ideal good pastor, founding othe monasteries, educating the clergy, and preaching the Gospel to the poor (Magnificat, 147-48). Saint Martin is a tremendous example for all of us, but here is the story that really stands out. "Saint Martin is perhaps best remembered for tearing his warm cloak in half and sharing it with a shivering beggar, only to discover later in a dream that the beggar was Christ. He never lost his love for the poor or for a life of personal poverty in service to the Gospel" (152). We encounter our Lord in many different ways and this story of Saint Martin is a powerful one because we are to see the face of Christ in our brothers and sisters. On this day of remembrance and thanks, we ask Saint Martin to intercede for us, help us to proclaim the Good News, and to see Christ in the faces of others! Have a blessed day!!!