Perhaps many of you don’t remember much (or anything) about Martin of Tours. But he is a man worth recalling, and his commitment to non-violence is commendable for people of all ages to consider and to emulate.
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Martin of Tours was born around 316 A.D. in what
today we call central Europe. He was the son of a Roman military officer. Like
his father, he was compelled to serve in the Roman army. Even though a soldier,
Martin was drawn to the Christian faith, still relatively new and sometimes
suspect within the Roman Empire.
When he was still under 20 years of age, he
encountered a poor, shivering beggar on a bitterly cold winter day. Moved by
compassion but having nothing else to offer, Martin cut his heavy military
cloak in half with his sword and gave one part to the beggar, keeping the other
for himself.
That night, Martin had a vision or dream in
which Jesus appeared to him wearing the half of the cloak he had given away.
Jesus said to the angels around him, “Martin has clothed me with this garment.”
This story may have been embellished with dramatic details, but it captures the essence of Martin’s compassionate character.
This vision deeply affected the young man,
leading him to be baptized soon afterward. For two decades or so, however, he
continued to be a Roman soldier. But when he was about 40, Martin finally decided
he could no longer remain a military man.
According to some sources he had another dream
or vision which convinced him he could no longer be a soldier. Julian, the
Roman emperor, prepared a military campaign in which Martin’s unit was expected
to participate. But before the campaign began, Martin stepped forward and
declared, “I am a soldier of Christ; I cannot fight.”
The emperor interpreted Martin’s words not as
a matter of conscience but as cowardice, accusing Martin of seeking to avoid
battle. Martin replied that his refusal was based on his Christian faith, not
fear. This was the beginning of conscientious objection to warfare, embraced by
only a minuscule percentage of Christians in the following centuries
The Waldensians, who began in France late in
the 12th century, is the only Christian group that practiced
pacifism/non-violence before the beginning of Anabaptism in 1525. But it was challenging
for even them and the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), which began in
England in the mid-17th century, to maintain that practice.
In the U.S., conscientious objection to
military service was not recognized as valid until World War II. (See my May 20,
2017, blog post about conscientious objectors).
Diana Butler Bass is a well-known and
respected public theologian. She posts meaningful articles on Substack
twice a week. Her November 11 post was the second one this year about Martin. I decided to write about him after reading “The Warrior Ethos,” her September
30 post about Martin (see
here).
The latter was largely Bass’s criticism of Pete
Hegseth, who from 2001 to 2021 served as an infantry officer in the U.S. Army
National Guard. On January 24, Hegseth (b. 1980) was confirmed as a member of the
POTUS’s Cabinet. On an official U.S. government website, he is now identified
as “the secretary of war.”
In late September, Hegseth called a surprise
meeting at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, to deliver a strong speech to
several hundred top military generals and admirals about reviving “the warrior
spirit” or “warrior ethos” in the U.S. military.
As Bass wrote, “Hegseth is probably the most
openly Christian nationalist true believer in the entire Trump administration ….
He always brings Jesus to the war party. Because, of course, in the theology of
Christian nationalism Jesus is a Warrior.” In contrast, Bass goes on to state,
No early Christian — not a single church leader, pastor,
or theologian —
in those first decades after Jesus lived, taught, died, and rose again would
have ever considered their God to be a warrior.
Except in the most metaphorical sense of being a warrior
for Love.
So, whose example and words do we choose?—those
of Martin of Tours or of the current U.S. Secretary of War? For those who
are true followers of Jesus, it seems like a “no-brainer.” What do you think?
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Yep! A no-brainer. It's long been documented that the early church was pacifistic for a couple of centuries.
ReplyDeleteIt's fairly easily argued that one of the greatest corruptions of the Xn Church was identification with a political empire. However, Christians were fighting over doctrine even before that. Overall, church history is not a pretty history. I haven't adopted the traditional Calvinist doctrine of the total corruption of human becomings, but these days, I'm finding that doctrine coping into my thoughts about humanity.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your two comments yesterday, Anton. From what learned about early church history, Christians were mostly pacifistic up until the 4th century, changing only when Christianity was largely corrupted by its being incorporated into the Roman Empire. But whenever the change came, I agree that the history of Christianity (Christendom) from the 4th century to recent times has not been a "pretty" history, as you said. That is why I have so much appreciation for the Waldensians and then the Anabaptist and Quaker traditions.
DeleteThose three movements, as well as, to some degree, the "restoration movement" of the Church of Christ "denomination" and to a certain extent some Baptists all sought to live like Jesus as much as possible. It seems strange to me, though, that so many contemporary Christians, especially those on the religious Right, seem not to pay much attention to the teachings of Jesus but are much more eager to follow what they see as the teaching of the Apostle Paul as interpreted by conservative evangelicals.
The first comments I received this morning was at 6:20, but it was from a non-Japanese Thinking Friend in Japan (where it was already 9:20 p.m.). He wrote,
ReplyDelete"Great word and great message. For me the real war is spiritual warfare not with eating war against human brings as image beaters."
Local Thinking Friend David Nelson shared the following comments, and from them I learned two things that I had not discovered in my research for writing the blog article:
ReplyDelete"Thanks for another great article. The Statue of Martin of Tours is one of my favorites at our Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City. It shows the encounter with the beggar. Another reason Martin is special to me is the myth that Luther’s parents asked the priest when they baptized a young infant, 'whose feast day us this? Martin of Tours. Then his name shall be Martin.'”
Thanks, David, for sharing this about Martin. I have been to Nelson-Atkins many times, but I don't remember the statue of Martin. (There is so much there, I never get to see as much as I would like to when we go--but maybe I have seen that statue and didn't pay adequate attention to it.)
DeleteConcerning the second matter, according to Perplexity AI, "Martin Luther was indeed named after Martin of Tours. He was baptized on November 11, 1483, which is the feast day of St. Martin of Tours, and his parents named him Martin in honor of this saint."
Well, AI gave me an answer to your question about the art at the Nelson: "The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art does not have a statue of Saint Martin of Tours, but it does have a painting by Bernard van Orley titled "The Knighting of Saint Martin by the Emperor Constantine". This oil on wood panel painting depicts the story of Saint Martin's knighting." So maybe ties together your memory with David Nelson's memory. Or maybe they used to have one.
DeleteHere is a link to the painting of Martin of Tours: https://art.nelson-atkins.org/objects/18892/the-knighting-of-saint-martin-by-the-emperor-constantine
As for the naming after Martin of Tours, if Martin Luther is named after him, then Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr, is, too. That is quite a reach down through the centuries!
I am currently rereading Elaine Pagel's 1979 "The Gnostic Gospels" in connection with Milton's class reading her 2025 "Miracles and Wonder: The Historical Mystery of Jesus." I first thought that second book was about the mystery of the historical Jesus, but she actually was writing about the historical mystery, which led me to reread her 1979 book. The modern clashes between liberals and conservatives are amazingly similar to the ancient arguments between the gnostics and the emerging "orthodox" church. The Roman persecution of both groups of Christians even very much anticipated the later outrages of the Inquisition. I was deeply reminded of Dostoyevsky's "Grand Inquisitor" section of "The Brothers Karamazov." Pagels even cites Martin Luther, George Fox, and Paul Tillich examples of Christian thinkers still struggling with the challenges of that ancient struggle; which even seems to be there in Martin of Tours, who was knighted by no less than the Emperor Constantine, yet who followed his inner light to become a pacifist. Perhaps there really is at least not much really new under the sun!
Thanks so much, Craig, for researching what is at Nelson-Atkins and for augmenting my article with the information about Martin's knighting by Emperor Constantine. I didn't know about that, and for good reason. According to AI, Martin wasn't literally knighted by Constantine or anyone else. Here is what Perplexity AI says,
Delete"This painting reflects later Christian and medieval artistic imagination that combined iconic figures symbolically to convey themes of sanctity, royal favor, and Christian virtue. The association of Martin with Constantine in art expresses the idea of Martin as a soldier of Christ and a Christian hero, rather than a factual historical incident. Thus, it should be understood as artistic and devotional rather than historical fact."
I have read some of Pagel's previously writings (probably "The Gnostic Gospels," but I don't remember for sure), but I haven't seen her new book--and I miss being in Milton's class to learn/discuss many important books and ideas with him and those who participate in his worthwhile class.
Well, now I am reminded of St. Paul's warning in 1 Corinthians 13:12, "For now we see through a glass darkly ..." Even when AI tells the truth, it probably will not be the whole truth! Thank you for the additional information about Martin and Constantine!
DeleteAnd here are comments from Thinking Friend Virginia Belk in New Mexico:
ReplyDelete"I think Jesus' life on earth and his teachings, were grounded in his Palestinian Judaism lineage and heritage. He once said he came not to bring Peace but a Sword. However, that 'sword' was a rebuke to the Pharisees who were following the letter of the law but not the intent. While Constantine did much to make Christianity acceptable, he also did much that was antipathetic to what our Lord taught and practiced.
"Poor Mr. Hegseth is misguided in his interpretation of Jesus as a warrior. There is nothing in Jesus' commandment, 'You shall love God with all your heart, mind and soul and your neighbor as yourself,' that indicates we humans should be killing each other because we disagree, or because we want land that is occupied by another group, or any other motivation for military intervention."
Thanks for your comments, Virginia, and for referring to the words of Jesus (from Matthew 10:34). Citing Perplexity AI again (which quickly summarized how I interpret those words), "Pacifist Christians read Matthew 10:34 as a warning about the inevitable divisions and suffering that come from following Jesus, not as a license for violence or war. Jesus’ words reinforce nonviolent, self-sacrificial love—even when it leads to conflict or persecution."
DeleteSometimes I think Perplexity AI is a Christian.
DeleteInteresting comment, Fred. But that is one thing that bothers me about AI: it seems to agree as much as possible with the person asking for information. So, since it (whether Perplexity or other AI systems I use, such as Claude or ChatGPT,), can soon tell that I am writing as a Christian, the information I get seems to be "Christian." But my guess is that if an agnostic/atheistic wrote negative things about Christianity, AI would not sound like a "Christian" to them.
DeleteExactly. I'm finding Comet and ChatGPT really helpful, however, for Bible study -- and for confirming all my theological opinions!
DeleteWell, Fred, since AI gathers and assimilates a host of information, maybe your theological opinions are correct.
Delete