Saint Martin de Porres, born in Lima, Peru, in 1579, emerged from a life of poverty and racial discrimination to become a symbol of compassion and humility. As a Dominican lay brother, he dedicated his life to serving the marginalized, tirelessly caring for the sick, poor, and enslaved. Despite facing prejudice due to his mixed-race heritage, he demonstrated unwavering kindness and charity, earning a reputation for miraculous healings and profound humility. Saint Martin de Porres’ commitment to social justice and his ability to bridge divides inspire generations. Canonized in 1962, he remains a beloved figure, a testament to the transformative power of love and selfless service.
Life of St Martin of porz by Bob and Penny Lord Martin was born of John Dees a Spanish nobleman and Knight of the order of alcanta and a black free woman Anna Velasquez Martin’s father was not very happy to find his child was black he did
Not want to be connected with the child in any way as a matter of fact on the baptismal record there was no mention of the father at all the baptismal certificates read only Martin son of an unknown father but some years later he officially acknowledged Martin as being
His son we’re not sure if JN ever married Anna Velasquez if he did he didn’t treat her very well he spent most of his time in other countries leaving Anna and the children Martin and his sister Joan to fend for themselves though Martin was not from a poor background you would not
Have known it by the way he and his family lived there were always at least borderline poverty and sometimes full-blown poverty but none of this had any detrimental effect on Martin if anything it gave him an understanding and empathy for his poor brothers and sisters from his earliest days he
Focused completely on his Lord present in the Tabernacle of all the churches of Lima and in helping out the poor his mother became furious with him in the early days she would send Martin shopping for food and trusting to him the meager pennies the family had just
Enough to get some bread and a few Necessities to see them through their meals Martin inevitably took the money and gave it to the poor when he returned home with nothing in his basket his mother would let him have it how can you give to the poor we are the poor it’s
Bad enough that you will not eat to today but what of your sister and me we didn’t volunteer to starve he got lost in the churches this was his most favorite time when he entered the dark cool Church the entire world was left outside he was in
A Haven he spent hours before the Blessed Sacrament before the crucifix looming high on the altar or a statue or painting of our Lady this was truly his home he was St Martin Delaware porz an orphan on pilgrimage journeying through this time on Earth in preparation for
His trip to his Heavenly Home in Paradise although John dorz only came to Lima on very rare occasions he must have been shamed by his relatives or neighbors who could see the way Anna and the two children were living they needed some kind of home education food and
Clothes Anna also had need but John had had never cared much about her well-being so it was not thought that he would now spend any amount of time and money taking care of her or her children never mind that he was the father although he had finally recognized them
As his own his behavior towards them was the same as towards a slave however when Martin was about 8 years old the father came and took him and his sister back to Ecuador with him which was where he was living at that time the children went to school they
Were fed and clothed properly the father actually admitted to being the parent of both children to his various relatives whom they met in the few years they lived in Ecuador but when John dores left Ecuador to govern Panama he again dropped the two children off in Lima at the home of
Their mother this time he left her enough money to get them out of poverty and put Martin through school where he would learn a trade this was a very important move and we’re sure it was orchestrated by the Holy Spirit Martin chose to learn the trade of a barber now
You may say to yourself what’s the big deal about being a barber well in Europe as well as in Central and South America a barber was an honorable profession like a doctor or a lawyer it carried with it the same Prestige as a matter of fact as part of
Learning to be a barber Martin also learned surgery or the surgery of the day which was letting blood with leeches healing wounds broken legs and arms fractures and giving out medicine for illness so the barber was also a surgeon doctor and pharmacist for Martin this was a
God-given gift he was remarkably good at this profession remember we’re talking about a 12-year-old boy beginning his apprenticeship as a barber he learned quickly and well and before very long he was outdoing the teacher the instructor was able to leave him in charge of the shop knowing full well that whatever
Happened during his absence the young Barber could manage it as well or better than he the instructor was very astute in this assumption because being left on his own was the opportunity Martin wanted and needed he handled himself brilliantly in many situations where the patients who were brought in were in
Very bad condition he cured them and had them back to work in a short time his Clinic was like an emergency room soon people came into the shop not looking for the owner but for Martin and he never disappointed any of them at the beginning this was a good way for Martin
To continue The Works of Mercy he had begun as a young boy when he used to go to the mark market and wound up giving the fam’s money to the poor now he treated the poor and would charge them nothing this was his way of serving the
Lord and putting back in the pot so to speak paying the Lord back for the gift of healing which had been given to him through his profession his Fame spread throughout the entire city of Lima people came for any and every ailment imaginable and the professional young
Mad Barber was able to heal them through the gifts of the holy spirit Martin never forgot where his gifts were coming from he never for a moment thought there was anything about him that caused these healings to come about they were from the Lord and he knew it St Martin’s miraculous lemon
Trees it was also at this time that the beginning of his special gifts became apparent one of the first and most lasting was a fruit tree a lemon tree which Martin planted in the courtyard of his house no sooner was it planted than it bloomed immediately and its blossoms
Gave forth fruit abundantly the tree continued to yield fruit so bountifully the branches weighed down by its yield often appeared as if they would break this tree would provide Lush lemons until well after Martin had died it came to be called Martin’s miraculous lemon tree Martin loved Jesus so much he could
Not spend enough time with his Lord he went to the church as often as he could he would just stay by our lord Jesus adoring him in the Tabernacle he spent all his evenings alone in his room arms outstretched in the form of a cross praying concentrating in ecstasy he
Focused his attention on the crucifix in front of him he blocked out every other image in the world but our lord Jesus on the cross there was a fervent expression of Love on his face this was witnessed by a close associate of his who peaked in on him through the keyhole of his
Room as he prayed there on many occasions Martin and Jesus were becoming so close that anyone or anything else was a distraction the few hours he was able to spend before the Blessed Sacrament were not enough Martin wanted to spend all his time with Jesus adoring
Him as he did in his cherished hours away from the Barber Shop during the 4-year period of his apprenticeship as a barber SLS surgeon he became so proficient in his healing profession his name became very famous most especially among the Indians and blacks in the town
Both slave and free he was their symbol of respectability he gave them selfworth in an era when the question often asked among Catholics was whether blacks had souls and could warrant being baptized this beautiful young black child of Jesus was proofed positive that Jesus was the God of All Creatures large
And small and the blacks and Lima were no exception this is one of the reasons that his decision to leave his profession and turn his entire life over to God as a Dominican brother threw them into a panic his people needed him to be highly visible they needed him as a
Representative of the poor and often unwanted people in the city they needed him to remain an important figure in the town Martin had his own needs however and he believed his greatest need was for total consecration to the Lord he had always felt that he served the Lord
Best through his work with the poor of Lima he found himself being pulled apart we’re reminded of one of his role models St Katherine of Sienna she wanted more than anything to lock herself up in her small cell and spend the rest of Eternity with Jesus but she also knew he
Wanted her to be for the people if she would have become a nun she would have disappeared Behind The Cloister and never would have been able to touch the people in the way that she did St Martin Delaware porz had the same dilemma we believe the reason he chose to be the
Lowest of the low in the Dominican order adido was so that he could have the best of both worlds he could serve his Lord concentrate his life on Jesus and still serve the poor the brothers and sisters who looked to him to give them respect in the
Community he was 16 when he joined the Dominican order as a dadoo most likely Martin had made his decision without asking the advice of his father and definitely not his consent although John dorz had never been a real part of his son’s life he felt that Martin was his son a
Possession and was dragging the good name of the family down he had no problem with Martin entering the order of preachers the Dominicans his problem was where Martin was entering the order John felt he should at least be a lay brother of the first order the priests but definitely
Not a lay brother of the third order this was the lowest of the low he appealed to the father provincial father laurenzana who was more than willing to to allow Martin to enter on the higher level but Martin refused he insisted on being the lowest of the low perhaps
Martin wanted the world to know that he was nothing Jesus was everything to quote St Paul yet I live no longer I but Christ lives in me in so far as I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God who has loved me and given
Himself up for me we know that John dorz was not very happy with the type of work for which his son had volunteered but Martin dove into his new career of sweeping the chers scrubbing the corridors and cleaning the toilets with the same enthusiasm and dedication he had shown for barbering and tending
The sick he never stopped doing these loving tasks no matter how important he became in the eyes of the world and a time was to come when he would be sought out by the most important people in the known world he never forgot who he was
And who it was who was working through him and lest he ever get a swelled head the filth of the mud and dust being trampled in from the outside the F stench of the toilets would bring him out of his Ry very quickly there’s a really important point to stress here
Don’t for a moment believe that Martin dores enjoyed cleaning toilets or sweeping floors this was a reality check this was his way of disciplining himself to understand and accept his role in this life the role the Lord asked him to take on and to which he said yes at one point
In the life of St Bernadet the little Visionary of Lord a famous photographer came down from Paris at the time bernardet was one of the most famous women in France though she was only 14 years old he said to her Bernadet come with me to Paris
I will make you rich and famous to which she replied but no mure I would much rather stay here and Lord and be with the poor people this is my place in life at another time when she was deathly ill in the convent of gildard in Nevers
France she was asked why she would not return to The Grotto at Lord for a healing and she replied the Blessed Mother used me like a broom what do you do with a broom when you are finished finished with it you put it behind the closet door so Martin brandished his
Broom as a knight would wield his sword to this day when you see paintings of St Martin Delaware porz or statues of him you will always see his weapon of sainthood his broom he was Don kote the man from La Mana the dreamer of impossible Dreams in Lima when Pilgrims
Go to venerate the great Saint they are often given a broom as a sign of the humility which Martin embraced so happily Martin had a tendency to reward those who treated him badly as a matter of fact he showered them with gratitude an example of this was when he continued
His profession of bobber surgeon after joining the Dominicans now instead of the clients he was used to serving in the clinic his clientele was mostly brothers and Priests of the Dominican order Martin tried tried his best to remain a humble servant he desired neither praise nor recognition for doing what he believed
Was his duty he would never take credit for being a good servant at the cause for Martin’s beatification a priest gave testimony of Martin’s great humility when the priest father Francis Velasco carabantes was a novice he wanted to talk to Martin who was busy at his duties as Barber the
Novice did not want his hair cut he felt great disdained for the way the Dominicans shaved their heads in the Tona style the entire Crown was shaved bald while the smallest section of hair was left around the head perhaps AR novice Brother Francis at the time had a
Little vanity left over from his secular days at any rate he just wanted to talk to Martin but while he was deeply engrossed in thought trying to determine how he would approach his mentor Mar and grabbed him put him in the barber’s chair and began working on his head by
The time brother Francis became aware of what was happening to him his head had been shampooed shaved and was being dried he went into orbit he jumped out of the chair and bered Martin with every exploitive he was supposed to have forgotten when he entered religious life
He called him a molat dog a hypocrite a cheat at at that point Martin was still lost in his job of tonsuring the novice’s hair during which he always prayed deeply it was as though the Angels were doing the work while Martin was conversing with our lord Jesus and
His mother Mary in ecstasy so he was going through the motions of drying the novice’s hair when he came out of his ecstasy and realized he was being scolded by this time one of the recors father gamara had WT witnessed the entire Outburst he grabbed Brother Francis and
Began to criticize him severely for his attack on Martin meanwhile Martin wanted the novice to look at his head in the mirror so that he would realize he didn’t look bad with the toner Brother Francis backed off on his attack but the Rector inflicted a severe punishment on
Brother Francis and sent him away this was when Martin went into action he went to the Superior and begged forgiveness for Brother Francis he tried providing the brother with every excuse he could he even tried to justify how Brother Francis might have called him a mad dog
And a hypocrite his mother was negro while his father was white that took care of the madal part he was a Dominican which meant Watch Dog of God that could Loosely have taken care of the dog slur in an effort to close the case in favor of the brother his final
Argument was everyone knows what a sinner I am the director who was also the disciplinarian Knew Too Well what a St Martin was and how he berated himself he could not refuse Martin so he forgave the novice and relented St Martin Delaware porz of the punishment as if that was not enough of
A reward for Brother Francis Martin sent him fresh fruit a rare delicacy in the monastery in a very short period of time Martin was asked to take care of the sick for which he was well trained as part of his profession as Barber and so the cycle was complete he was now doing
Everything he had done in secular life only he was doing it for the Lord as a religious most of the sick who came to him were the black slaves who had been brought over from Africa this became a major part of his Healing Ministry often times he would miraculously increase the
Food portions which he gave to the people he would go out of his way to do anything he could to make their sufferings lighter this done his greatest gift was to be able to spend time in the chapel with the Lord Martin could not have been happier he was
Treated badly very often by those to whom he ministered but he never let that bother him he offered up everything for the glory of God more often than not people he accused him of false modesty and humility he agreed with them when they reviled him criticizing the work he did
They really hated when he agreed with their insults his superiors after much investigation ascertained that he really did believe himself the lowest of the low the worst sinner whereas they all recognized the true saintliness of the little brother one aspect of Martin’s life which all his biographers found most
Exceptional including Butler’s lives of the Saints and the act of sanctorum was that he handled three major jobs Barber surgeon wardrobee keeper and infirmarian each of these loving tasks was a full-time job requiring a tremendous amount of work and concentration however Martin managed all three of these jobs with ease with joy
And with a great deal of Competency now remember he did these in addition to all his other non-assigned tasks and spent hours each day in the chapel adoring our lord Jesus in The Blessed Sacrament one way he was able to accomplish these goals was by not sleeping the gift of
Bilocation Martin was in an excellent position to evangelize in his ministry as Barber surgeon he was an Ardent follower of St Dominic his father in faith he believed firmly in Dominic’s commitment to teach the people of God St Dominic maintained that the cause of a great deal of the heresy which was
Rampant throughout the world was ignorance and neglect wherever he went he found these two evils he was convinced that the only way to stop heresy was to preach and teach in this way freeing it from the basic causes of evil Christian so society would be restored to the church that Jesus
Founded St Dominic named his order the order of preachers for that reason that they would go out and teach the faithful the enemy finds his richest soil in the ignorant Martin had an open invitation to preach to the unlearned they came to him every day not looking for Spiritual
Aid but physical and material Aid what better opportunity to share the word of God he had a captive audience as he filled their stomachs and healed their bodies he fed their souls with stories of this great church and its Saints in many ways he reminds us of blessed Wan Diego the Visionary of
Guadalupe he became the sacristan in the little chapel built after the apparitions of our Lady when people came into the little chapel onean Diego told them the story of the Indian and the lady from Heaven pretty soon soon they would find themselves seeking out the priests and they were on their way to
Conversion most of the poor uneducated people who came to Martin were slaves or former slaves from Africa who had come to Peru on the slave ships but as part of his Outreach Ministry Martin had what he termed the pain of desire he reached out to Dominican missions in Japan and
China there were Spanish prisoners in Infidel countries such as turkey Martin ministered to those Brothers also not in Peru but in whichever country they were located how did he do this he was given the gift of bilocation witnesses testified having seen Martin in China and Japan sitting
With little Street people all around him teaching them about the love of Jesus erasing the ignorance to which they were the victims another example of bilocation occurred one day when Martin instituted a new medical treatment in the infirmary relatively new in Lima and not really tested the brothers
Questioned him on it they asked him how he was sure it was safe to use this procedure to which Maron very matter ofly replied oh I saw it done this way in France in the hospitals of Bon the brothers looked strangely at Martin they knew he was not making up a story and
Yet they knew he had never been out of Lima Peru from the day he entered the Dominican order it was in effect an admission of the powers the Lord had given him to bilocate one day a Spaniard came to the Dominican Monastery of the Holy Rosary he passed Martin and stopped in his
Tracks he was a struck he called out to Martin father Liberator Martin brushed him off with a smile and a quick Assurance he would speak to him later the Spaniard rushed to the other brothers to tell them how he had been a prisoner in Turkey when Martin visited him and his fellow
Prisoners he brought them whatever he could to make their condition more livable he brought food for the body and food for their souls he left them a little money this was not once or twice but often during long years of imprisonment the Spaniard further testified he said it was the little
Money that Martin brought over the years that finally gave the Spaniard what he needed to pay a ransom to the guards to get out of prison while the brothers were astonished at the tale they were not really surprised they knew there were many times when Martin was off by himself in deep
Meditation who knows where the Lord brought him during these times Martin and the locked doors the brothers knew for firsthand some of the things he did in the monastery it was a known fact that the doors to the infirmary and the doors to the noviciate where Martin had his
Quarters were locked with heavy locks and the keys were in the possession of the superior on more than one occasion when a sick or dying brother in the infirmary would ask for Martin to come to Aid or console him the infirmary Personnel would run to the superior to
Get the keys to open the doors so that Martin could enter then as they were running towards the locked door to let Martin come in the infirmary they would find him already in the patient room ministering to the sick person without interference from locks and benefit of keys another instance of Martin and
Locked doors occurred when two novices ran away from the monastery the master of novices in a panic asked Martin to lift them up in prayer as Martin’s prayers always got the desire tired results Martin began to pray and immediately knew where to look for the two runaway Brothers he went to
The place where they were 2 miles from the monastery the door was locked that meant nothing at all to Martin he went through the door and awakened the brothers who had been fast asleep on CS rather than berate them for fleeing the monastery he spoke to them in the gentlest tone he
Could muster within minutes they were eager to go back to the monastery but now a new problem arose how would they get back into the monastery we know it was no problem for Martin but what about the brothers how would they get in no problem they just
Huddled next to Martin and as he went through the locked doors they just went in with him sometimes when Martin would pass through locked doors he would be carrying heavy things with him nothing seemed to get in his way he had a lot to do and a limited amount of time so he
Couldn’t be bothered with things like lock doors or cumbersome objects he would always Comfort the sick it could be any hour of day or night if Martin felt it necessary to be with a sick brother he would just appear out of nowhere with sheets or Linens or a
Braier when the patient awakened he would find Martin sitting there with whatever was that the sick one had been craving whether it was water to cool a fever or something to eat he would mop the brow of those who were perspiring heavily he was just there another gift
Was that after Martin left the ill person they usually improved greatly and very often experienced the total healing Martin and the dying one of Martin’s special gifts was a little scary he knew when someone was going to die the brothers would watch him when he paid a lot of attention to a particular
Patient in the infirmary they knew that person was going to die there was even a saying among the brothers that brother will soon die because Martin goes to see him often a dear friend of Martin’s father cyprian de Medina became very ill he was admitted to the infirmary but
According to the doctors he was a hopeless case five of them had given up on him advising everyone in the community it was time to administer the last rights of the church but Martin had not come to his room to console him now father cyprien knew well that Martin
Always consoled and prepared those who were ready to enter the kingdom he also knew the prognosis of the doctors the question that kept going through his mind was where’s Martin has he abandoned me it was late in the evening the brothers began a death watch over father cyprien not believing he would last
Until the morning Father cyprien asked for Brother Martin no one could find him the hours flew by father cyprien became very nervous he prayed for Brother Martin to come it was now about 3 in the morning the priests and the brothers had given up hope of Martin arriving in time
To see father cyprian before he died all of a sudden very quietly Martin entered the room the priest thought he was seeing a vision he was so happy to see Martin he had new energy and used it to really let Brother Martin have it for not being at his bedside at this his
Hour of death Martin just sat there had bowed while his friend went through their entire life together all the time complaining he could not believe believe that Martin could have abandoned him at this time and then adding he had been sure he would die without Martin praying
Over him finally after Martin felt that father cyprien had gotten all his hurts out of his system he raised his head and said very quietly father you should have realized that you were not in danger everyone knows that when I make frequent visits to the cells of the sick it is a
Bad sign do not be upset if you have grown worse this crisis will only serve to end your illness more swiftly but you will not die now God Wills that you should live and give him more Glory by continuing to serve him in religion naturally Martin’s prognosis was correct
Father cyprien recovered he and Martin remained the best of friends and he continued in his ministry for many years as a matter of fact father cyprien ministered to Martin at his death Martin wardrobe keeper and beggar many of the jobs Martin took on himself were out of holy
Coincidence he would do any task others did not care to do the job of wardrobee keeper was thrust upon him because he was in charge of the infirmary actually he was responsible for two areas of the community he had to be sure they had enough habits for the
Brothers that they were in good shape and clean and he had to be responsible for the infirmary and all the supplies necessary such as bed linens blankets pajamas and the like one reason he was assigned the job could have been that the cupboard was virtually bare there
Were no supplies and the powers that be knew that it would take a miracle to restock the be shelves and the only one who was good at asking God for miracles was Martin we don’t know if he did or didn’t want this job Martin knew that it was a necessary task which needed
Organization and he was great at organization when he saw the condition of the supply Department he immediately put his logical mind to work they needed supplies but didn’t have any money with which to buy them they needed money but where would they get it from those who
Had money Martin began to build a list of benefactors who would be most happy to cooperate with Martin and the community he was very well known in Lima even if it had not been that his father was a political figure of the Town Martin by his years of service in the
Community and the word of his closeness to God had developed quite a name for himself when he went looking for help it came fairly easily Martin was able to purchase a complete news set of everything the community needed but while he was a good fundraiser he was
Also Frugal once he had all this equipment he made sure that it was well taken care of he gave all the brothers a number he attached the number to their clothing he also set up a cubbyhole system in the supply room each week he would distribute clean clothing and pick
Up the dirty clothing he organized a similar setup in the infirmary things were a little more difficult to handle there the items like sheets pillowcases blankets mattresses beds were all items in demand by the local people and they had no qualms about stealing what ever they could when they could the problem
Was that Martin was no fun he knew where everything was one day when Martin left a patient alone in the supply room the man shoved a few sets of sheets in his trousers which were very blousy when Martin returned to the room the man casually headed for the door Martin very
Lovingly but firmly ordered him to return the sheets saying the sick have so little linen they can’t get along without even this pair of sheets then there were the mattresses and the beds once he had left a mattress on the line to air out when he went to retrieve it
Sometime later it had disappeared he immediately went with another another brother to a dark store room directly to the spot where it had been hidden another time a whole bed was stolen a black worker who had been using it complained to Martin that it was missing
Martin told the man to wait for him in the infirmary he then went to one of the priests whose servant had stolen it he told the priest father if that servant has no bed please see to it that he gets one but he should not take the the bed
Of the Negro who works in the infirmary Martin and the mice St Martin Delaware porz and the mice remind us of St Francis of A9 and Lupo the wolf the farmers in the town of gubbio were going to kill a wolf who was attacking their chickens and cows and
Eating all their crops Francis asked to speak to the wolf he met him in the forest and pleaded with him to stop his vandalism immediately Francis said he realized that the wolf whom we now call Lup was hungry he said he would make a deal with Lup if he
Would stop vandalizing the farmers crops and animals Francis would guarantee that the farmers would feed him Lup stopped vandalizing the Farms the farmers took turns feeding him and Lup not only became their friend he also became their greatest Defender against Invaders to this day there is a statue
Of Lupo in the center of the town of gabo when you look at a pray card or the canonization painting of St Martin you see him welding the broom as we said before then you see the dog but to his right on the floor there is a dish with
A cat and a mouse and a dove all eating from it at the same time the mouse is a very important symbol of the ministry of St Martin Delaware porz it began with a problem St Martin’s wardrobe room after all his work getting new clothing shirts
Sheets and such one day he found that there were mice in the room they were nibbling on the shirts and sheets making holes and doing their business there making a terrible smell Martin didn’t know what to do his Superior suggested spreading poison to kill the mice that
Would do it but Martin wasn’t having any of that he waited and watched until one day he was able to catch one of the little enemies he held him in his hands the mouse was sure this was his end his little heart was beating so fast but
Then Martin spoke to the mouse softly and gently in a short period of time the mouse relaxed he had no fear of Martin Martin explained the problem they couldn’t have The Mouse and his friends chewing up all the supplies needed for the monastery and the infirmary he
Realized it was because they were hungry and were not getting enough food Martin worked out a deal with the mouse if he led his friends to the far end of the garden where they would find a new place to live which Martin would show them Martin promised that he would be sure
They received more than adequate food every day we’re not going to say the mouse actually answered okay but in effect it seemed like he agreed with his eyes when Martin put his little Newfound friend down the mouse scurried away within minutes from all over the Wardrobe room the heads of hundreds of
Little mice appeared from every nook and cranny Martin LED them out of the Wardrobe room out to the Garden where there was a whole area which would be suitable for them they immediately began nuzzling into the dirt making holes where they could set up their living
Quarters Martin was good to his word as the mice knew he would be every day after he finished feeding everyone else The Shins the workers in the monastery and the street people he would go out to the garden with food for the mice for their part they never came back to the
Wardrobe room or disturb the monastery in any way the mystical Gifts of St Martin St Martin Delaware porz was a very specially blessed child of God the hand of the father was on everything he did mystical gifts abounded in Martin to such a degree that they were accepted as daily
Occurrences the Lord had blessed him with seemingly all the gifts from heaven but they were all for the benefit of the children of the Kingdom a perfect illustration would be what we would call a repeat of the biblical multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes only in this instance
It was not Loaves and Fishes but soup and bread one of Martin’s tasks which we did not classify up above with that of Barber surgeon wardrobe keeper and infirmarian but which in itself could have been a full-time job was that of feeding the poor at the beginning of
Every day there was never enough food by the end of each day there was not only enough food there were baskets filled with food food left over for the little animals that waited hopefully at the kitchen doors to be fed Martin would come every day to the refectory where he
Would feed the poor he would look at the meager Provisions available for that particular meal then look at the swarm of hungry mouths waiting to be fed one of the brothers who helped out in the kitchen brother aragones testified that he watched as brother martin began to
Serve them he prayed first for the salv ation promised by Jesus and then he prayed may God increase it through his infinite Mercy what was in the PT was enough to feed four to six people meagerly what was waiting to be fed was anywhere up to
250 Martin began to pour and serve as more and more poor people came to be fed every one of them was given huge helpings yet there was enough for all and then for the little dogs and cats remember Mar tin had a great love for the Animals Martin was also known to
Levitate there were many eyewitnesses to this miracle it had a blessed effect on the people who witnessed it they were strengthened greatly in their vocations one priest father Ignatius of Dominic proclaimed this throughout his priesthood I’ve said it and I’ve repeated it millions of times that I
Decided to become a Dominican because I saw brother Martin dorz in prayer lifted high above the earth almost embracing the crucified Christ in the Chapter Room unfortunately this great espouser of the mystical Gifts of Martin was not alive when it came time to give this testimony at the beatification process the
Superior wailed if only father Ignatius were alive to give his testimony a surgeon Marcel de Rivero asked isn’t my testimony enough I saw him just as father Ignatius did high above the ground in the chapter room and my word is just as good as his we get the
Impression that Marcel de Rivero was a little myth that his word might not be as good as the deceased priest the saint of social justice the term social justice has been bandied around a great deal in this 20th century Martin has been called the patron saint of social justice but we
Must clarify what is meant here by social justice on the surface social justice would seem to mean feed and clothe the poor and that is so it does mean that but not just that feeding the body is not the entire extent of it that’s only part of it we have heard
That in some dases in the United States those reaching out to the poor are not even to mention the name of Jesus they are to find find out what the physical needs are and take care of them that’s not social justice at least not Catholic Social Justice without Jesus in the center of
It it becomes socialism with Jesus in the center of any program be it feeding the poor visiting the sick or clothing the naked it will be abundantly blessed and prosper without Jesus in the center these programs are socialism at best and communism at worst and they will fail
Martin spent a great deal of his life taking care of the poor he did all of the things above and more but he had one Focus Martin’s whole apostolate of Charity had only one purpose to awaken the love of God in souls in All Souls without exception in The Souls of the
Rich as well as the poor there’s the difference his charity was god- centered many of our brothers and sisters of today could take a lesson from our little saint of Lima St Martin and the devil it would make a great deal of sense for Satan to
Hate St Martin Martin was one of his worst enemies Martin did everything he could to keep Souls out of hell and on the road to heaven the lord gave him the power to take away all the excuses people have to sin they looked at this
Simple man and saw Jesus he he took away Prejudice and bigotry he was a black the lowest of the low in Lima of that time yet he was the special one of God he took away starvation people came to Martin and they were given Mana from Heaven it went
On and on whatever Satan could come up with to drag people down to the depths of Hell Martin could counter with Jesus and his promise of everlasting life in Paradise it only stands to reason that Satan would have his demons attacking Martin at every opportunity one evening Martin was
Rushing from his room to the infirmary loaded down with supplies he used a rickety stairway which had been closed down because it was too frail and dangerous he wasn’t supposed to use that stairway but it was the most direct route between his room and the infirmary
And he felt he was under the protection of the Angels anyway so it should be okay right wrong as he was moving along at Breakneck speed he was stopped in his tracks by this monstrous unbelievably hideous demon from hell it’s impossible to describe accurately except that it
Was revolting a very ugly face emanated from the body Martin addressed the thing with great anger what are you doing here accursed one the creature replied I am here because it pleases me to be here and because I expect to profit by being here Martin replied away with you to the
Cursed depths where you dwell the demon held his ground Martin dropped his supplies took off his belt and began whipping the creature who disappeared immediately Martin took a coal from the braier which he always carried with him and made the sign of the cross on the wall and prayed in Thanksgiving to the
Lord for taking care care of him another instance of demonic attack was witnessed by Francis the LA Tori an officer of the Guard who was sharing Martin’s cell the night of the battle Martin’s C was in the back part of the cell and the captains was in the front Francis Was
Preparing to go to sleep when he heard a door open and close and Martin spoke Francis could tell something was wrong by the tone of Martin’s voice now you have to understand that Martin was a man who never raised his voice who always spoke gently and with a great deal of
Love to hear anything other than that emanate from Martin’s mouth was to know that there was a serious problem of foot Martin’s tone was angry he said what have you come here for you Troublemaker what are you looking for this is not your room get out by what
Francis could make out from the sounds that he heard there had to be more than one demon it could have been as many as a legion of devils at any rate they attacked Martin with a Vengeance knocking him about the room Francis went to the alov separating the room he
Wanted to come to Martin’s Aid he looked at the scene he could see Martin being thrown from one side of the room to the other he would Flinch move his head from one side to the other back and forth and then again back and forth as if he were
Being struck he doubled up with pains in the stomach and he went flying to another part of the room but Francis could not make out even a hint of anyone beating up Martin suddenly the entire room was in Flames Francis ran to help Martin he couldn’t let Martin burn to
Death he burst into the room and with Martin’s Aid put out the Flames the fire extinguished the noises stopped the room abruptly returned to a harsh silence the two men went back to their beds and as soon as their hearts stopped pounding they fell into the sleep of the innocent
A few hours later Martin Rose to ring the dawn Bell he lit a candle for Francis and left the room Francis jumped out of his bed to assess the damages from the fire and the brawl which had taken place there a few hours before as as he looked around he could see no
Signs of a battle there were no burn marks no broken Furniture nothing was in disarray Francis the LA Tor was bewildered Martin was a simple man a few words he showed an inner control almost the total peace he was the epitome of humility in everything he did or said he
Projected the best of his father in faith St Dominic and all that was espoused in the Dominican Family of brothers and Priests but when he did speak you could count on whatever he said in addition to his gentle lilting voice the content of his speech was so
Solid so filled with the spirit his listeners were enraptured by him Martin was so concise his words so well chosen although not deliberately so he brought his points home so effectively it was obvious these gifts were coming from above as he was just a lay helper the
Lowest of the Dominican order he didn’t waste his time talking about sunry things he concentrated his efforts on things above rather than of things of the earth he took to heart the scripture passage do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink and do not worry
Anymore instead seek his kingdom and these other things will be given you besides for where your treasure is there also will your heart be luke 12 29- 3134 Martin embraced the vows of poverty Chastity and obedience as an alcoholic would Embrace a drink or a man stranded
In the desert for 30 days and nights would Embrace food and water there are those who take the vows of poverty Chastity and obedience there are those who actually embrace these vows but marate breathed and Liv these vows they became part of who he was the fiber of his very
Existence he woke up in the morning for his vows his last thought of the day were these vows they brought him closer to Jesus Martin goes home we believe that Martin spent his whole life as a pilgrim on his journey of Faith to the kingdom everything he did everything he said was
In preparation for that time when he would shed his Earthly body and be with his beloved Jesus in Paradise the Lord made him work for 60 years before allowing him to leave the Earth Martin went to his Heavenly on November 3rd 1639 but he could not leave his beloved Dominican Community without preparing
Them for his absence towards the end of the preceding summer his body just fell apart on him he had abused it for decades in an attempt to break the chains that Shackled us to our flesh physical mortification was a nightly practice all the years he was a member
Of the Dominican Community because of his special relationship with the Lord his superiors gave him more leeway with this than they might have given an ordinary brother apparently they felt our lord Jesus or our lady or Street Dominic would have stopped him if he were embarking on areas which would
Prove dangerous to his health Martin knew when he would die there were indicators which the brothers shared in the beatification process the first indicator that death was in the often came when one day out of the blue martin wore a new habit that may not seem unusual but when you consider that he
Wore the same old beat up haboc for 25 years without ever changing it the sight of a new habit would draw stairs from everyone in the community when Father John barbason said in Surprise eyes what happened Martin smiled his gentle smile and responded this is the habit I am to
Be buried in Martin had never spoken about his own death before this statement put a chill in Father baran’s heart he loved Martin very much Martin was his mentor he considered himself one of Martin’s spiritual Sons father barabin was leaving the Holy Rosary Monastery shortly to take a teaching
Position in kusco he feared if Martin’s demise was as imminent as he made it appear he would never see Martin again he knew he could not return to Lima before the end of the year but when he was to depart LMA Martin said to him we will see each other very soon because
You will not be absent from LMA very long father barabin replied I cannot possibly return before the end of the year because the superiors are sending me to teach theology so the priest left with a heavy heart fearing he would never see his friend Martin again however Martin was correct again shortly
After father baraban left Lima he returned his trip was postponed indefinitely he was there to say goodbye to Martin when he left for heaven another man John figuroa came to Martin asking for him to pray for his soul at his hour hour of death Martin told him I
Shall die first then a few days after he put on his new habit he became violently ill now we come to a very unusual part of the story for most of his life the Lord had given Martin the power to heal people he raised people from the dead
All he would have to do is touch a person and they would experience a healing and yet when he became ill to the point of death he had no power to heal himself it may be ironic but it is not unusual many Saints experienced the same
Thing when it came to their own illness they were not able to help themselves at all what does this prove to us we believe Jesus is trying to tell us very clearly in these instances that he is the Healer and no one else if Martin were truly healing the people he would
Have no problem healing himself however possibly to prove to the people that he was not the Healer he couldn’t heal himself he suffered excruciatingly during the months of September and October his superiors insisted he not sleep on the hard board he had used for a mattress for so long
And to exchange his old sackcloth habit for a good lighter habit Martin was always obedient to his superiors but the new habit caused him so much more pain than the old one had he asked permission to take off the new habit and replace it with his old sackcloth habit permission
Was granted Martin dores out of obedience did sleep on a proper bed for a change one of the greatest struggles for the better and Martin was his inability to go about his daily duties in addition to not being able to minister to the sick and poor healing
And Fe beating them he just couldn’t do anything he couldn’t run all over the place handling his chores as Barber surgeon wardrobe master and infirmarian he was not able to serve his brothers and sisters and that saddened and frustrated him but through all of it the Lord was still showering Martin with
Many blessings towards the end a high official came to Martin to say goodbye to a friend and a counselor the brothers LED him to Martin’s cell and knocked on the door there was no answer they looked in Martin was in ecstasy the vicro insisted he would wait until Martin came
Out of it he went outside and talked to the brothers about marttin it was about 15 or 20 minutes before Martin came out of his ecstasy at that time he saw his friend bid him farewell and asked for his prayers the superior was upset with Martin for having made this important
Man wait for him outside Martin said nothing in his own defense finally the superior who really just wanted to know what was going on in Martin’s ecstasy ordered him to explain why he made the vicroy wait so long Martin pointed to a small altar on which the Blessed
Sacrament was in reserve waiting to be given to Martin at the moment of his death Martin told the superior that the Blessed Virgin was over there by the Altar and St Dominic his father in faith and St Vincent Farah along with many other Saints and Angels were there as
Well Martin said to the superior I was so occupied with those holy visitors that I couldn’t receive any other at that moment Martin suffered greatly physically as well as spiritually Satan felt that this was a perfect opportunity to snatch the holy brother of God and
Cast him into the bowels of hell he took advantage of Martin’s weakness to try to weaken him spiritually however the angels and Saints came to his Aid and he defeated the power of Satan on November 3rd 1639 after receiving the Blessed Sacrament for the last time Martin
Surrendered his body and soul into the hands of his heavenly father he let go of the crucifix which he had held onto so tightly it was finished how ever that was not the end but the beginning of the Miracles as they were preparing to bring his body downstairs to be venerated by
The faithful blood curdling screams were heard from one of the priests he was in agonizing pain one of the brothers shouted out to him invoke Martin dores whose loss we all feel so keenly no sooner had the words been spoken than the priest’s pain disappeared and he was completely cured
Martin was dressed in the new habit he prophesied would be the one in which he would be buried he was brought into the church for the people of Lima his brothers and sisters those for whom he labored all his life to say goodbye as the brothers were keeping watch with him
The night before the crowd was to come in Father cyprian de Medina whom Martin had brought back to life from the brink of death touched his body it was stiff father cyprien had the kind of relationship with Martin where he could joke with him in life and in death he
Said to him but what’s this so stiff and rigid brother don’t you know that as soon as day breaks the whole city will come to see you and praise God in you ask God to make your body flexible for you know we would render him infinite thanks for that within a matter of
Minutes the body was loose and flexible the face lost that hard look of death father cyprien and the brothers lifted Martin’s body to a sitting position so that he looked alive and ready for a visit with his people Miracles after his death began almost immediately as a matter of fact they
Began at the veneration of his body sick people were carried to the church and up to the body of Martin when they left they were able to walk home cured from their illness es 2 days after Martin’s death a brother was on the throws of death in agonizing pain then the next
Morning he awoke completely healed he said Martin had come during the night with our lady St Dominic and St Katherine of Sienna Martin said this visit will cure you the Miracles went on and on and continued to go on and on Devotion to this powerful man of God has
Never ended never slacked off the Miracles through the intercession of St Martin Delaware porz have never L up in 1837 he was beatified and on May 6th 1962 Pope John XI proclaimed him a member of the church triumphant a saint of our church Praise Jesus for St Martin
Delaware porz and his powerful sign in the church in the world