Causing Scandal

Saint Martin of Tours was born in the fourth century to pagan parents in Sabaria, comprising parts of modern day Yugoslavia and Hungary. His father was an officer in the Roman army. His family moved to Pavia in Italy when he was still a child. And there the boy first learned of Christianity, felt drawn to it, and became a catechumen. Afraid of the reaction from his parents and also of the largely pagan community, Martin kept his love of Christ hidden. Following his dad's footsteps, young Martin joined the Roman army at the age of fifteen. He was stationed in Gaul during a winter season. One day while riding into the city, he noticed a beggar near the city gates. The poor man was shivering with cold and had turned almost blue. Martin had no money to give him, but had a very heavy woolen cloak to keep himself warm. So he divided the cloak in two pieces, gave one half to the beggar, and barely wrapped himself with the other half. This kind act by the young man immediately caused a big scandal among his peers and the town folks. They realized Martin was a Christian.

Though it seems hard to believe, today we live in a world which is more kinder and loving than the world of a few thousand years ago. Donating your old clothes or sharing a meal does not cause scandals anymore. We have come a long way from the culture of abandoning the sick family members with the fear of getting sick ourselves. Waging war against neighbors just to loot their wealth is unheard of nowadays. We contempt genocide.  And we consider human sacrifices to appease gods barbaric. Two thousand years ago, when Jesus spoke of love for one another, the idea was so scandalous that his hearers took offense at Him. When early Christians sold all their possessions to distribute their wealth among other members, it caused great scandal because it was way outside the human rationality. When the Christian monks began teaching ordinary people to read and write, it too caused enormous scandal because those were the privileges of the nobility. Caring for and rehabilitating the sick were a cause of scandal because the sick ones were considered worthless to the society. Feeding the hungry and assisting them to get back on their feet was scandalous because the poor were looked down as burden to the advancement of societies. Visiting and comforting those in prison was scandalous because they were the filth of the community. Assisting the addicts to put their lives back together was scandalous because they were synonyms for personal irresponsibility. 

In short, knowingly or unknowingly, today's world follow teachings of Christ to a great extent. Even the un-Christianized societies of the world show certain responsiveness to the Christian value of charity. Even then, we have plenty of opportunities in today's world to cause a scandal for Christ. The life and dignity of human person is threatened throughout the world. Abortion, same-sex marriage, and euthanasia are areas where every Christian needs to find am opportunity to cause a scandal. Like St. Martin of Tours, let others come to find out that we are followers of Christ through our actions. 

The Church celebrates the Memorial of St. Martin of Tours, Bishop and Confessor, on November 11.