THE MEMORIAL OF ST MARTIN OF TOURS, BISHOP.
THE MEMORIAL OF ST MARTIN OF TOURS, BISHOP.
"Jesus said to his disciples,
“Things that cause sin will inevitably occur, but woe to the one through whom they occur. It would be better for him if a millstone were put around his neck and he be thrown into the sea than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin.
"Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he wrongs you seven times in one day and returns to you seven times saying, ‘I am sorry,’ you should forgive him.”
"And the Apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”
"The Lord replied, “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.” (Luke 17: 1 - 6).
Monday 11th November 2024, 32nd Week in Ordinary Time is the feast of St Martin of Tours. (316 - 397).
St Martin was Bishop. St Martin was born of pagan parents in modern day Hungary.
Martin was a soldier in the imperial army of Rome. After he encountered Jesus Christ, he became a Christian and a man of peace.
Today is also Veteran Day in the USA, Armistice Day in other countries. November 11 served in the past as a day of the memorial of the signing peace treaties. The treaty to end World War 1 was signed on the Feast of St Martin of Tours, November 11th. Hail Jesus Christ, Prince of Peace. Happy Veterans Day!
In the Entrance Antiphon on the Feast of St Martin of Tours, the Lord made Martin a faithful priest who embraced God's will in everything.
Martin founded a monastery in France and was consecrated later as the Bishop of Tours. He sent missionaries to evangelize France. France is one of the earliest Christian countries in the world and is known as the Elder Daughter of the Church.
St Martin de Tours can help us appreciate the truth that God's gracious and mysterious will is our peace and prosperity. Lust for power and greed for riches lead nations to war. Consider the end of these nations: The France of Napoleon, the Germany of Hitler, the liquidation of the Soviet Union of Stalin. The Prince of Peace warns that those who live by the sword will perish by the sword. (Cf Matthew 26: 52).
Our key Scripture deals with the all important question of faith.
"And the Apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”
"The Lord replied, “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.”
"What is faith? It is the confident assurance that something we want is going to happen. It is the certainty that what we hope for is waiting for us, even though we cannot see it up ahead." (Hebrews 11: 1 TLB).
FAITH COMES FROM HEARING THE WORD OF GOD AND PLEADING BOLDLY FOR FAITH.
I thank our Lord Jesus for the mustard size faith that I have. Because of this small faith, I am who I am today. Everything I enjoy in life such as the Eucharist, Reconciliation, Sunday leisure, even this Blog, etc comes from faith.
I heard this word of God from Psalm 103: 1 - 5, in the depth of my heart and said to myself: This is exactly what I need. Then I believed that this word is a personal Rhema for me. I believed it. Today this word is coming true in my life.
"1 Praise the LORD, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. 3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, 4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, 5 who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's." (Psalm 103: 1 - 5).
In the 11th Chapter of Hebrews, we see the portrait of faith drawn from the key characters of the Hebrew Scriptures. For example: Abraham, David, Elijah, etc. We may add to this list: Mary, John the Baptist, John the Evangelist, Mary Magdalene, Paul, etc.
All these people and All the Saints we celebrate in the Roman Missal lived by faith and fulfilled the spiritual law that "the just man shall live by faith." (Cf Habakkuk 2: 4, Romans 1: 17, Galatians 3: 11, Hebrews 10: 38).
How do we get faith?
"So faith comes from hearing, and what is heard comes by the [preaching of the] message concerning Christ." (Romans 10: 17 AMP).
Faith comes too by asking for, pleading, praying for faith like the Apostles: "Lord increase our faith."
Do you believe the message below?
"God so loved the world that he gave his Only Begotten Son, so that all who believe in him may not perish, but may have eternal life." (John 3: 16). If you believe this Scripture, you have faith. Fan it into flame.
"Why do you think I have spoken to you so often of My Eucharistic Face? It is because “face” signifies “presence.” The devotion to My Eucharistic Face is the remedy to the loss of faith in My real presence that has swept through My Church at every level, extinguishing the fire of Eucharistic charity and causing even My elect, My priests, to grow cold and distant from Me. This is My word to you tonight and this is why I brought you to this place. Any loneliness you may feel is an invitation to seek Me out in the Sacrament of My divine friendship and to console My Eucharistic Heart." (IN SINU JESU, Sunday, October 19, 2008 Saint Paul of the Cross).
November is the Month we pray for the Souls in PURGATORY.
“One of the holiest works, one of the best exercises of piety, which we can practice in this world, is to offer sacrifices, alms and prayer for the dead.” (St John Chrysostom, Doctor of the Church).
For Catholic Church teaching on the Souls in PURGATORY and how to help them, click the link below:
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