Word to the Wise
Monday, November 3, 2008 - St. Martin De Porres, O.P.
[Philippians 2:1-4 and Luke 14:12-14]Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves, each looking out not for his own interests, but also everyone for those of others. (St. Paul to the Philippians) Rather, when you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you. (Jesus in the Gospel of Luke)
Saint Martin De Porres is one of the most prominent Dominican saints in the world! He is also the patron of our Southern Dominican Province. When I was a child and visited on occasion small African-American churches (Catholic or otherwise) in my part of Louisiana, I would often see a statue of Martin De Porres. His life story is readily available to anyone with access to a computer or Butler's Lives of the Saints! I will confine myself to pointing out that he exemplified graphically the lines from both the scriptures for today that I have quoted above. Saints are often portrayed in art (and awful statues) with some symbol. Martin's symbol is a broom! He was the doorkeeper/janitor of the priory in Lima, Peru, where he lived all his life as a Dominican. At that door, he became a one-man social welfare agency - meeting, greeting and feeding and clothing poor and rich alike. His room was basically a broom closet under the front stairwell. He is a major patron in the Church of those who work for social justice. (I admit I am tempted, as well, to invoke his intercession in dealing with the mice that continually show up in my little house here in Kentucky. Legend has it that he struck a deal with them to feed them outside if they'd stay outside, so he is occasionally shown not only with the broom but with some mice at his feet!) When I was a pastor in San Antonio, I learned that after Our Lady of Guadalupe, Martin De Porres is the most popular saint among Mexican people. His ability to "humbly regard others as more important" than himself, and to "invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind" and care for them at the front parlor of the priory has become a model to be imitated by others around the Church and the world! He could very well be the right one to seek out when we need the courage to overcome our fears and reach out to the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind and welcome them. AMEN
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