Saint MARTIN
St. Martin was born in Hungary in the year 336. Like his father, Martin joined the military. He became a catechumen during his stay in France. One day in Amiens he came across a poor man who was freezing in the cold damp weather; he took his cloak and gave it to him. This act of kindness was told to the people and Martin became known as a model of charity. In his biography we read of a vision he had where Jesus would have spoken to him and said: "Martin who is but a catechumen covered me with his cloak and followed my words, 'each time you do this to the least of your brothers/sisters, you have done it unto me'."
He was baptized in Amiens (France) after which he traveled throughout all of Europe. He returned to Gaul (France) and founded the first monastery of Gaul in the year 360 in Ligugé, upon the advice of Hilary of Poitiers. He lived a very frugal life but will have a great impact on the people. Thanks to Martin, this first monastery grew in numbers as it became well known for its holiness. Martin was a great contemplative who knew how to share his passion for prayer with others.
Many miracles have been attributed to him as concrete manifestations of both his love for the little ones, the victims and his deep spiritual life. The people were convinced he was a saint and "kidnapped" him from his monastery to make him the bishop of Tours in the year 371. The other bishops were against this, for they considered him to be a strange, uneducated monk. He founded the new monastery of Marmoutier near Tours which flourished rapidly and founded an order for the evangelization of the region. Martin was a very persuasive speaker. He knew exactly what to say to the working classes to release them from the clutches of paganism; he also knew what to say to the noblemen and prelates of his time and was not afraid to call them to practice the Gospel.
He died in the year 397, a model of the contemplative life, of charity and of evangelization. People came to know him through his biographer, Sulpicius Severe.
GANDHI
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born 2 October, 1869, on the west coast of India. He belonged to a caste of merchants although some members of his family were involved in regional politics. He was brought up in the Hindu tradition. He married when he was twelve and five years later left to study law in England. In 1891, he set up his law practice in Bombay, and in 1893 emigrated to South Africa where he lived until 1914. In 1894, he founded the Indian Congress of Natal to defend the humiliated and ostracized Indian people living in South Africa.
It was during this time that he studied the Bhagavad and the Gospel, (particularly the Sermon on the Mount) and became an adept of non-violence, as a religious and political process. He used non-violent techniques to defend his claims as early as 1906.
Gandhi's spiritual search led him to lead a life of non-violence and of service to the humble members of society. He made no distinction between the spiritual and social dimensions of our life, and by so doing made a deep commitment to the advancement of Justice and Peace.
The non-violence practiced by Gandhi, known as the satyagraha technique, does not consist of pacifism or a state of passive resignation in the face of the enemy. The technique consists in adopting an active attitude of love, of resistance to situations of injustice, of opposition to evil, of disobedience to unjust and unfair laws in a non-violent manner. The satyagraha calls for great strength of soul, for one must be careful not to fall into the trap of vengeance and the cycle of violence.
In 1914, he returned to India after having fought for his principles in South Africa. He was convinced that he had a mission: to spread truth and non-violence throughout all the world as a way to counteract violence and lies.
Upon his return he made the commitment to fight against British imperialism and thus bring about the political and spiritual independence of his country. In 1915, He founded his first ashram and began to travel throughout the country to sensitize the people, particularly the poor, for he realized what a source of strength they were for the country. Gandhi began by organizing campaigns of civil disobedience to the unjust laws passed by the British, followed by campaigns of non-cooperation all of these non-violent actions served to de-stabilize the economy and the colonial administration. His most famous campaigns were the 'salt campaign' against the English monopoly and the 'textile campaign' against importing foreign textiles. In the latter campaign Gandhi became the apostle of the "khadi," the mills where the locally grown cotton was spun into thread.
Gandhi was an active participant in the negotiations that would give India a more favorable constitution and that eventually lead to the independence of the country in 1947. He never hesitated to risk his life, fasting almost to the point of death. In his struggle for independence he had numerous misunderstandings with the political leaders who were unable to dismiss him; they needed him because of his enormous popularity with the poor, even though they had to resort to violence.
Gandhi was very concerned with the peaceful coexistence of the Hindu and the Muslim communities. Although he did not succeed (partition between India and Pakistan) he never gave up and constantly searched for new ways of reconciling the two communities, and of putting a stop to the violence and the massacres. Gandhi also worked to put an end to the segregation of those people commonly called the "untouchables ' (whom he referred to as the harijans , the children of God), he also worked to obtain political rights and better social conditions of acceptance for them.
Gandhi was assassinated on January 30, 1948.
The message Gandhi left us is the message of the powerful force of political and spiritual non-violence. He also left us a series of different means that can be used to fight against injustice such as fasting, non-cooperation, silent marches, strikes
"I could not live a religious life if I did not identify with the majority of humankind, and the only way to do that was to become politically involved. If I am concerned with politics it is because politics is everywhere around us, it is like a snake wrapped around our body and no matter how hard we try, we cannot free ourselves from its clutches."
O. ROMERO
Oscar Romero was born in El Salvador in 1917 and ordained to the priesthood in 1942. He was consecrated bishop in 1970 and became the Archbishop of San Salvador in 1977. There was a time when Bishop Romero was a strong conservative, a serious introvert not open to the aspirations of his people. This situation would radically change with the course of events. His life was turned inside out with the assassination of his friend, Father Rutilio Grande, one among a series of priests who was killed. This event made him realize the seriousness of the situation of injustice and violence, and was the catalyst that changed his life.
From that moment on, O. Romero organized the life in his diocese around the teachings of John-Paul II, who spoke of the preferential option for the poor, one of the priorities for evangelization put forth at the various Conferences, (Puebla, Medellin ). He became very attentive to the type of faith experience deeply desired by the poor and the little ones of his diocese. He also became a staunch supporter of the base communities, the only bishop in the country to believe in them.
His keen sense of evangelization led him to want to find the means to inculturate Christianity into the social reality of his country, a country subjected to a state of poverty, to dictatorship and violence caused by the wealthy. His homilies were transmitted by radio throughout the country. He also had another program where he used to give an update of the situation as it was experienced by the people and the local Church. Whenever he got up to preach, he spoke out strongly against the violence and the injustices imposed upon his people. His radical stance was firmly rooted in the Gospel and in the dignity of the person.
"The Church maintains and defends the eternal truth revealed by God, that men and woman are the image of God and that because of the redeeming work of Jesus Christ they have been freed from the slavery of sin and have been given the dignity of the Son of God, free to choose their destiny and participate eternally in the glory of God. This is the truth of those who defend the Church no matter what the systems or political realities my be." ( 1.1.1980 )
Bishop Romero always tried to situate Christianity with regards to politics so as to speak out against corruption, the lack of democracy, human rights violations, to warn Christians of the danger of being too quick to bring together the Gospel and politics, particularly in groups using violence. The gospel does have a political connotation, but it also commands certain specific behaviors.
"That is the why we must ensure the process of the liberation of our country. The Church will not abandon us, it will continue to journey with us but with the voice of the Gospel, that of the transcendence of Christ. It will continue to demand that every one of those involved in the struggle for liberation, if they are to be strong and effective, place their trust in Jesus __Christ, the 'greatest liberator' of all and never turn their sights from Him." (1980).
Bishop Romero was adamant in his pursuit against the violence imposed by those in power, (politicians, wealthy land owners, military, national police) as well of that exercised by the militant revolutionaries who said that they were acting out of a sense of justice. Romero knew very well that he was walking a thin line, but he continued ahead with the conviction that the Gospel was not only the source of social justice but also the source of peace.
"No to violence was his (that of the Church) only cry, every time a hand was raised against another human being no matter who he/she was. Violence is an act of sin that soils the world. This cry of denunciation and of resistance never ignited the passion of vengeance and hatred within the Church Rather the voice of the Church always encouraged here fellowship founded in faith and in the truth revealed by God, as a source of inspiration for social doctrine." (1978)
He received numerous death threats and was assassinated on March 24, 1980, while presiding the Eucharist.
H. DUNANT
Henri Dunant was born in Geneva in 1828. His family was Protestant. As a youth he began to take interest in social action particularly with those who were unhappy. He was very concerned with ecumenism, and in 1855 founded the "Universal Alliance of Young Christians." After having gone through some financial difficulties, that will be a source of suffering for him throughout the whole of his life, he is present at the Battle of Solferino in 1859, a battle which was a bloody massacre and which will leave him traumatized till his dying day. After the battle was over he launched an appeal to men of good will to join him in creating a society that would come to the aid of those in battle, and care for the wounded.
With the help of G. Moynier he organized a congress that was held in Geneva in 1863. The 16 countries represented at the conference recommended the creation of "the National Society for Aid" and asked the governments to support and protect them. In 1864, the "Geneva Convention" was signed with the goal of providing assistance to the wounded soldiers in the armies of the outlying areas. The convention stipulates that the soldiers must be cared for no matter what their nationality. This is the foundation for the Red Cross, whose goal would expand as time went by to include caring for military and civil casualties in times of war and in times of peace. The categories cared for are the homeless, prisoners, refugees, victims of disasters The Red Cross began to open branches everywhere in the world. Today there are 125 groups we call the Red Crescents or the Lion or Red Suns to respect different religious beliefs. The Red Cross has no religious preference or religious affiliation (the word Cross in the title refers to the cross that is the national emblem of Switzerland and not to the Christian sign).
H. Dunant devoted himself completely to the Red Cross to the detriment of his own business affairs, forcing him to live a life of poverty. In 1901 he received the Nobel Prize for Peace. He died in 1910.
To this day, the Red Cross continues helping men and women wherever there is suffering because of war or disasters, with the consent of the signatories of the Geneva Convention. The Red Cross must receive governmental approval before being able to intervene; this is a deficiency and creates problems when one must act quickly. A good number of humanitarian organizations have been since been created that can intervene immediately without having to wait for authorization from the state.
| Back | Index | Next | |