11 November: St. Martin of Tours (b. 315)
Ironically, Martin is the patron saint of both soldiers and conscientious objectors. As a child he felt called to become a Christian (which he pursued in secret, since his parents were against it) and wanted to be a monk, but in his teens he was forced into the army. He tried to practice Christian goodness, including a famous episode shown here, where he cut his cloak in half to give to a freezing beggar. He was baptized at 18, and eventually found his growing Christian faith to be in conflict with the expectation that he would fight in battle, so he refused to fight. They were going to execute him for it, but the enemy unexpectedly decided to negotiate rather than fight, so he was let off.
His life is unusually well documented (see www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=81 for more info). I especially like the comment made by the boisterous crowd who wanted him as their next bishop: when the other bishops complained about how ragged Martin looked, they said “Hey! We don’t admire him for his haircut—we admire him because he’s holy!”—words of wisdom for us all.
Enjoy these last hours of lovely warm weather, and get ready to bundle up. Have a great week! ~ Karen
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Karen Soos
Associate Chaplain and Catholic Campus Minister
Davidson College
Campus Box 7196
Davidson NC 28035
704. 894. 2423
Associate Chaplain and Catholic Campus Minister
Davidson College
Campus Box 7196
Davidson NC 28035
704. 894. 2423
