“Compassion is preferable to cleanliness. Reflect that with a little soap I can easily clean my bed covers, but even with a torrent of tears I would never wash from my soul the stain that my harshness toward the unfortunate would create.”
~ St. Martin de Porres
St. Martin de Porres adopted us in 2015. He proved to be a trusty intercessor, showing up in many unexpected places throughout the year. Our devotion to St. Martin de Porres grew that year and continues to permeate our spirutial journey. We are delighted to share a bit about this humble and charitable saint on his feastday, November 3.
St. Maritin de Porres greeting us at Mission San Jaun Bautista, the start of our 2015 Our Lady to Bethlehem Pilgrimage.
Dragonfly as St. Martin de Porres & Fr. A, FSSP
Saint Peg Doll Swap 2015 (with 60 moms)
(Not Pictured — St. Martin de Porres cabin that we were assigned at family camp May 2015)
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The example of Martin’s life is ample evidence that we can strive for holiness and salvation as Christ Jesus has shown us: first, by loving God “with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind; and second, by loving your neighbor as yourself.” When Martin had co
me to realize that Christ Jesus “suffered for us and that he carried our sins on his body to the cross, he would meditate with remarkable ardor and affection about Christ on the cross. He had an exceptional love for the great sacrament of the Eucharist and often spent long hours in prayer before the blessed sacrament. His desire was to receive the sacrament in Communion as often as he could. Saint Martin, always obedient and inspired by his divine teacher, dealt with his brothers and with that profound love which comes from pure faith and humility of spirit. He loved men and because he honestly looked on them as God’s children and as his own brothers and sisters. Suchwas his humility that he loved them even more than himself, and considered them to be better and more righteous than he was. He did not blame others for their shortcomings. Certain that he deserved more severe punishment forhis sins than others did, he would overlook their worst offenses. He was tireless in his efforts to reform the criminal, and he would sit up with the sick to bring them comfort. For the poor he would provide food, clothing and medicine. He did all he could to care for poor farmhands, blacks, and mulattoes who were looked down upon as slaves, the dregs of society in their time. Common people responded by calling him, “Martin the charitable.” He excused the faults of others. He forgave the bitterest injuries, convinced that he deserved much severer punishments on account of his own sins. He tried with all his might to redeem the guilty; lovingly he comforted the sick; he provided food, clothing and medicine for the poor; he helped, as best he could, farm laborers and Negroes, as well as mulattoes, who were looked upon at that time as akin to slaves: thus he deserved to be called by the name the people gave him: ‘Martin of Charity.’ It is remarkable how even today his influence can still move us toward the things of heaven. Sad to say, not all of us understand these spiritual values as well as we should, not do we give them a proper place in our lives. Many of us, in fact, strongly attracted by sin, may look upon these values as of little moment, even something of a nuisance, or we ignore them altogether. It is deeply rewarding for men striving for salvation to follow in Christ’s footsteps and to obey God’s commandments. If only everyone could learn this lesson from the example that Martin gave us. ~ from a homily by Blessed Pope John XXIII given at the canonization of Saint Martin de Porres
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In honor of our Family Patron Saint, we would like to giveaway a saint peg doll. See the Rafflecopter entry below.
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RESOURCES:
- St. Martin de Porres Coloring Page – Catholic Playground
- St. Martin de Porres Coloring Page – Paper Dali
- St. Martin de Porres Story & Craft PDF – Heroes in Heaven
- St. Martin de Porres Bio for Kids – Holy Spirit Interactive
- St. Martin de Porres Printable Holy Card – Holy Reflections
- St. Martin de Porres Audio – Dominicana Journal
- St. Martin de Porres Novena
- St. Martin de Porres in the Breviarium
- Dominican Friars: Province of Saint Martin de Porres
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Prayer to St. Martin de Porres
To you, Saint Martin de Porres, we prayerfully lift up our hearts filled with serene confidence and devotion. Mindful of your unbounded and helpful charity to all levels of society and also of your meekness and humility of heart, we offer our petitions to you. Pour out upon our families the precious gifts of your solicitous and generous intercession; show to the people of every race and every color the paths of unity and of justice; implore from our Father in heaven the coming of his kingdom, so that through mutual benevolence in God men may increase the fruits of grace and merit the rewards of eternal life. Amen.
We love listening to the Glory Story of St. Martin. God granted him many favors, amazing!
Glory Stories are wonderful! St. Martin’s simplicity and gifts from God are what have drawn my littles, especially my boys, close to our beloved St. Martin de Porres.
St. Martin is such a wonderful Saint to help us focus on what is truly important and a wonderful example of serving others. God bless!
Thanks for taking the time to stop by. May St. Martin de Porres led us to growing in humility and generosity.
Awesome saint!
Indeed! St. Martin de Porres, ora pro nobis.
I LOVE this peg doll of one of my favorite saints! For some reason, the Irish have always had great devotion to St. Martin de Porres, and in every pub or shop there was a Martin de Porres charity box for change that everyone would donate to. We were especially encouraged, at school, that if we were praying for a special intention a donation into his box could never hurt! 😉
It doesn’t surprise me that he is a beloved saint of the Irish but I would love to learn if there is a specific connection.
I love San Martin de Porres. I watched the movie about him in Spanish when I was little and loved it because of his simplicity and love of animals. Thank you for the reminder so as an adult I can go to him and ask for his intercession in the simplicity of my life as a mother.
He’s truly a saint for us all! My littles are drawn to him because of his simplicity and one for his love of animals. 😉
We have read a couple children’s books on St. Martin de Porres. Very impressed by his humility and charity towards all. Certainly a great saint to emulate for our times. Our family patron saint this year is St. Maria Goretti, which has been fitting for this year of Mercy. My only daughter was born on her feast day and she has popped up in our lives in interesting ways.
Don’t you love how the good Lord works in our lives — the perfect intercessor just when we need it. St. Maria Goretti is my daughter’s patron saint this year. St. Martin de Porres and St. Maria Goretti, orate pro nobis.
My mom would tell me a story of when she was a very young girl in Mexico and used the money she had saved to buy a small St. Martin de Porres. When my son was born she gave me the little saint for my son. I hope to instill in him a love for the saints. One of my favorite movies growing up was Fray Escoba, a Spanish movie about San Martin de Porres. Can’t wait to see it again with my boys.
Praise God that your mother has foster your devotion to the saints, most especially St. Martin de Porres. You have a wonderful example to follow. May you cooperate with His grace and lead your beloved children closer to Him with the assistance of His most holy saints.
Another mom has mentioned that movie. I’ll have to look into. Thanks for sharing.
I love your devotion to this Saint. I do find saints have a way of inserting themselves in our lives and for this reason I have a great devotion JPII and mother Theresa. I was privileged to celebrate mass with both of them. And on several occasions be in the presence of JPII.
You are truly blessed to have been able to celebrate mass in such company. Deo gratias! (My family also has a devotion to St. Teresa of Calcutta.)
St. Martin de Porres is special in our home as his feast day is my daughter’s birthday.
So far, our main family saint has been St. Joseph. We were married in a church dedicated to St. Joseph the Worker and our first son we named Joseph. I loved learning more about St. Martin de Porres – thanks!