Feast of Saint Martin of Tours:

Feast day : 11 November

Today the Church celebrates the feast of St. Martin of Tours, Bishop of Tours who lived during the period 316-397. He was raised a pagan but began going to Church from a young age. He served in the Roman army but eventually left it to become a 'Soldier of Christ'. He learned the faith from St. Hilary of Poitiers and later was made the Bishop of Tours. As the bishop, he worked tirelessly to defeat heresy and paganism. Many miracles have been attributed to his intercession. He is the patron of beggars, cavalry, soldiers, reformed alcoholics, wool weavers and tailors.

Early life:

Saint Martin was born into a pagan family in the year 316 in Savaria, Hungary. His father was a senior officer in the Roman army. A few years after Martin's birth, his father was given veteran status and was allocated land on which to retire at Ticinum (now Pavia), in northern Italy, where he grew up. At the age of 10 he attended the Christian church against the wishes of his parents and became a catechumen.

Whilst he was still a catechumen he was forced to enrol in the army of the Roman Empire. Once when he was riding in the forest during winter he saw a poor beggar who was naked. On seeing him, he was greatly moved and cut his officer's tunic into half and clothed him. That night in a dream he saw Jesus wearing the same half of the officer's cloak and telling his angels, "It was Martin, who is still a catechumen, who clothed me." The part of the cloak that was kept by him became a famous relic that was preserved in the oratory of the Merovingian kings of the Franks at the Marmoutier Abbey near Tours. During the Middle Ages, the supposed relic of St.Martin was carried by the king even into battle. The priest who cared for the cloak in its reliquary was called a 'cappellanu' and eventually all the priests who served in the military were called 'cappellani'. The French word for the same is 'chapelains' from which the English word 'chaplain' was derived. People called the small temporary churches built to house the relic as 'capella' and eventually small churches began to be called 'chapel'!

Vocation:

He eventually left the army saying "Hitherto I have served you as a soldier; allow me now to become a soldier to God. I am a soldier of Christ; it is not permissible for me to fight." He started learning the faith under St. Hilary of Poitiers. He later set up his own monastery in Gaul and was made the Bishop of Tours in the year 371. He was reluctant to become the bishop but yielded unwilling at the insistence of the people. As the bishop, St. Martin worked tirelessly to defeat heresy and paganism, destroying temples and idols wherever he went. Once when he wanted to cut down a pine tree, the pagans agreed to it if he stood in the way as it fell. He agreed to it but miraculously when the tree fell it missed him by a few inches as it hit the ground. Several miracles, both during his lifetime and after his death have been reported through his intercession.

Death and Sainthood:

Saint Martin died in Candes-Saint-Martin, Gaul in the year 397. After he died, local citizens of the Poitou region and residents of Tours quarreled over where he would be buried. One evening after dark, several residents of Tours carried St. Martin's body to a waiting boat on the River Loire, where teams of rowers ferried his body on the river to Tours, where a huge throng of people waited on the river banks to meet and pay their last respects to St. Martin's body. He was buried in Tours and a small chapel was built over his grave. As his popularity grew, a larger basilica was built and his sacred relics were transferred to the new basilica. He is the patron saint of beggars, cavalry, soldiers, reformed alcoholics, wool weavers and tailors.