Daily Thoughts: I found it
rather interesting and even ironic as I read about St. Martin of Tours this
morning before celebrating mass. St. Martin was born in Pannonia (Hungary). In
his teens he became a Roman soldier following in his father’s footsteps but at
18 he was baptized and decided that his new found Christian values and military
service were incompatible so he got his release from the army. He moved to the
Gaul region of France where he founded a monastery with a small group of
disciples. Eventually despite St. Martin’s strong protests the people of Tours
proclaimed him their bishop.
The irony of the above story is that
every year we celebrate Veterans Day in the United States on the feast of St.
Martin of Tours, yet it was Martin who chose to leave the military because he
felt his Christian values were incompatible with it.
The second thing that caught my
attention about St. Martin’s story is that it was the people of Tours who made
St. Martin their bishop.
Now we have to put this story in
context. St. Martin lived in the fourth century and obviously life was
different, military service was different and Church was different. As a Church
over the centuries we have changed our stance on serving in the military and on
how we choose bishops. Yet it is interesting how this story about the life of
St. Martin of Tour can make us stop and think about life today and the choices
and decisions that we make in regards to our faith and our Church.
Perhaps when we find ourselves in these
situations, confronted with these and similar choices we become aware of the
challenge of our first reading today from the Book of Wisdom (Wisdom 1:1-7).
Wisdom tells us today that no matter what we face, no matter what choices are
in front of us, what decisions we are challenged to make – what is most important
is our continued trust in God.
If we look at the history of the world,
the history of life, the history of the Church, great decisions have been made
but so to have mistakes and poor choices. Things have constantly changed
sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse yet what has endured is our
trust in God.
As Jesus tells us in the Gospel today,
faith and forgiveness are key ingredients in the journey of life. We need to
have faith, to trust in God. We also need to be forgiving and trust that no
matter what choices or decisions we make we can also count on God’s
forgiveness.
Blessings and peace to all Veterans
today and happy St. Martin of Tours feast day to all! Enjoy your Monday
everyone!
Daily Prayer:
Loving God, on this Veterans Day –
Make us instruments of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let us sow love,
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
And where there is sadness, joy.
O God of Peace, grant that we may not so
much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved, as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive,
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to
eternal life.
(Adapted from a prayer attributed to St.
Francis of Assisi)
Runner’s Thoughts: “For every
runner who tours the world running marathons, there are thousands who run to
hear the leaves and listen to the rain, and look to the day when it is suddenly
as easy as a bird in flight.” (George Sheehan)
Daily Blessing: I hope everyone
had a good weekend and that you got at least a little rest and relaxation. I
hope your team or teams won and if not remember there is always next week!
November seems to be moving quickly and before we know it the holidays will be
upon us so make sure you stop and take a deep breathe every once in a while and
look around at life so that you don’t miss today!
And so I ask God to bless us all today
with a sense of reverence for the presence of God that we will encounter during
our journey through this day. A presence that we will find in the people we
meet, in the places we go and in the things we do. A presence that is first a
foremost with us each of us and so loving God make sure we take the time to
reverence ourselves today too!
Loving God bless us also with your peace
so that the struggles, the difficulties and the challenges of this day do not
get us down but help us to know of your presence and love in our life!
Loving God renew our spirits so that we
may live this day in your service, in your presence and in your love. Amen!
Blessings to all Veterans! And blessings to all who serve in the military may
you make it home safely and soon! Happy Veterans Day to all! Happy Feast of St.
Martin of Tours to all! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul
