Troy W.
Martin of Tours was born in Sabaria although raised in Italy by his pagan parents. To his parents dismay he took refuge in a church as a child and found he longed to serve Christ. During his adolescence he was forced to join the Roman army due to his father being an official. He only had one slave to which they would switch roles. Martin would often clean his slave’s boots and showed endless compassion towards other soldiers. During his service Martin came across a beggar in the heart of winter, he had nothing but his weapons and a military cloak. No one was paying any attention to this beggar and Martin saw this as a sign to take action. He took his sword and sliced his cloak in half giving one half to the beggar. Martin the following night heard the voice of God saying “Martin who is still a catechumen covered me with this cloak.”(Pg. 93) Thereafter the barbarian’s invaded and all Roman legions were called to action. Caesar Julian was to give all soldiers a bonus and as each soldier was called up individually Martin came up. He requested to be discharged on the grounds of serving Christ. Caesar called him a coward where Martin refuted, “Tomorrow I shall stand unarmed before the frontlines. With neither shield nor helmet but with the sign of the cross to protect me.”(Pg.94) The next day the enemy surrendered itself and all of its supplies. Martin left the army and was ordained an exorcist by the Bishop Hilary. In his travels back to his homeland he fell into the hands of Brigands. He was sure to have been robbed of all his belongings but instead converted one of them and was set free where he then arrived home. He set his mother free from paganism while his father remained in sin. Martin arrived in Poitiers where Hilary had been exiled. A catechumen wished to be like Martin and begged him to aid him, a few days later this man fell dead. Martin locked the door and hurled himself upon the corpse and prayed for two hours where the man slowly began to move his limbs and finally opened his eyes. He immediately went under baptism and for the rest of life supported Martin. Martin was now being considered for bishopric of Tours. Everyone cast their votes but a few other bishops resented him and complained of his appearance. At the same time these bishops could not find other faults in him and stated he was a great man. The main reoccurring theme in this text is the act of charity. Martin has an endless amount of compassion and only wishes to serve Christ through love and charity.
In the secondary readings Lynch depicts Martin as being firm and strong hearted but also as caring and compassionate. Martin is a somewhat controversial figure in this time period due to his upbringing and experiences as a soldier “Some fellow bishops in Gaul disapproved of Martin, who, they thought, lowered the dignity of the episcopate because he was a former soldier of humble birth and spotty education.”(Lynch 227) Since Martin is not a typical Bishop he can reach out to communities that might otherwise not be interested in Christ. Lynch emphasizes Martin’s knack for preaching to the illiterate, poor and people in the countryside (Lynch 227). I think Martin is a great example of what a bishop should be; compassionate, willing to preach to any listener, and critical of the church. He was able to touch anyone’s heart and had the tools to do so.
Martin of Tours was born in Sabaria although raised in Italy by his pagan parents. To his parents dismay he took refuge in a church as a child and found he longed to serve Christ. During his adolescence he was forced to join the Roman army due to his father being an official. He only had one slave to which they would switch roles. Martin would often clean his slave’s boots and showed endless compassion towards other soldiers. During his service Martin came across a beggar in the heart of winter, he had nothing but his weapons and a military cloak. No one was paying any attention to this beggar and Martin saw this as a sign to take action. He took his sword and sliced his cloak in half giving one half to the beggar. Martin the following night heard the voice of God saying “Martin who is still a catechumen covered me with this cloak.”(Pg. 93) Thereafter the barbarian’s invaded and all Roman legions were called to action. Caesar Julian was to give all soldiers a bonus and as each soldier was called up individually Martin came up. He requested to be discharged on the grounds of serving Christ. Caesar called him a coward where Martin refuted, “Tomorrow I shall stand unarmed before the frontlines. With neither shield nor helmet but with the sign of the cross to protect me.”(Pg.94) The next day the enemy surrendered itself and all of its supplies. Martin left the army and was ordained an exorcist by the Bishop Hilary. In his travels back to his homeland he fell into the hands of Brigands. He was sure to have been robbed of all his belongings but instead converted one of them and was set free where he then arrived home. He set his mother free from paganism while his father remained in sin. Martin arrived in Poitiers where Hilary had been exiled. A catechumen wished to be like Martin and begged him to aid him, a few days later this man fell dead. Martin locked the door and hurled himself upon the corpse and prayed for two hours where the man slowly began to move his limbs and finally opened his eyes. He immediately went under baptism and for the rest of life supported Martin. Martin was now being considered for bishopric of Tours. Everyone cast their votes but a few other bishops resented him and complained of his appearance. At the same time these bishops could not find other faults in him and stated he was a great man. The main reoccurring theme in this text is the act of charity. Martin has an endless amount of compassion and only wishes to serve Christ through love and charity.
In the secondary readings Lynch depicts Martin as being firm and strong hearted but also as caring and compassionate. Martin is a somewhat controversial figure in this time period due to his upbringing and experiences as a soldier “Some fellow bishops in Gaul disapproved of Martin, who, they thought, lowered the dignity of the episcopate because he was a former soldier of humble birth and spotty education.”(Lynch 227) Since Martin is not a typical Bishop he can reach out to communities that might otherwise not be interested in Christ. Lynch emphasizes Martin’s knack for preaching to the illiterate, poor and people in the countryside (Lynch 227). I think Martin is a great example of what a bishop should be; compassionate, willing to preach to any listener, and critical of the church. He was able to touch anyone’s heart and had the tools to do so.