Soldier, Monk, and Bishop

Homily for the Memorial of St. Martin of Tours

St. Martin of Tours lived in the fourth century after Christ. He became the third bishop of Tours, a city of Gaul which is now known as the country of France. He was the son of a senior officer in the Roman army. This fact determined the course of his early life as he was expected to pursue a military career. However, he is best known for the account of his using his sword to cut his cloak in two, to give half to a beggar clad only in rags in the depth of winter whereupon the beggar disappeared from his sight. If this story sounds familiar, it is very much similar to the story of Francis and the leper. Both Martin and Francis experienced a conversion of life because of these experiences.

After separating from the military, Martin became a disciple of St. Hilary of Poitiers and went on to establish a monastery at Ligugé. Subsequently, he was ordained as the bishop of Tours and served in that position for 26 years. He is credited with the subjugation of the Gallo-Roman religion and the defense of an ascetic sect in France.

In both the story of St. Francis and St. Martin, the hallmark of their conversion was the forfeiture of their wealth. The Gospel text that is proclaimed today is the compilation of several sayings which follow the parable of the dishonest steward. These sayings are followed by the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. Our proclamation of this text today fits very nicely into the biography of St. Martin and his generosity to the beggar. Sandwiched between two parables about the dangers of serving wealth, St. Luke makes a strong case against the accumulation of great wealth.

God has given us every good thing, and we have been given free will to seek, obtain, and use these material goods. At the same time, the Gospel is always challenging us to attend to our motivations and desires, and to examine them in light of what God commands. When our priorities align with our faith and our relationships reflect the love and grace of Christ, then we are doing well at being who we are called to be.

We may not be mentioned in a letter of St. Paul, such as the many people who are mentioned in the conclusion of his Letter to the Romans, but if we do right, there will come a time when we can talk to St. Paul about our struggles with materialism. Walking in the footsteps of the poor Christ who gave his life for us, we, like St. Martin and St. Francis, can live lives free of concern for acquiring things.