Bishop · Feast day November 11
St. Martin of Tours
The feast day of St. Martin of Tours is November 11, a memorial in the US Catholic calendar. Traditionally invoked as patron of soldiers and beggars. Below: a short life and 1 sourced quotation in their own words.
| Feast day | November 11 |
|---|---|
| In the US calendar | Memorial |
| Title | Bishop |
| Died | c. 397 |
| Patron of | soldiers, beggars |
| In their own words | 1 sourced quotation |
| Next on Bless’s Today screen | None left in the published calendar (through December 31, 2028) |
Life
A Roman cavalry officer’s son, catechumen at ten against his family’s wishes, soldier by conscription. At the gate of Amiens he cut his cloak in half for a freezing beggar; that night Christ appeared wearing it. Baptized, he told the emperor that as a soldier of Christ he could not fight.
He founded the first monasteries in Gaul, was carried off by stratagem to be made bishop of Tours, and evangelized the countryside for a quarter century — the first great saint the Church honored who was not a martyr.
Patron of
Tradition invokes St. Martin of Tours as patron of soldiers and beggars.
Saints with the same patronage
- St. Sebastiansoldiers · January 20
- St. Georgesoldiers · April 23
- St. Joan of Arcsoldiers · May 30
- St. Ignatius of Loyolasoldiers · July 31
Patronages are traditional, not an official list. All patron saints in Bless, A to Z.
In their own words
Each quotation names the work it comes from. Bless quotes these in the comments beside the verses listed under In Scripture.
Lord, if I am still necessary to thy people, I do not refuse the toil: thy will be done.
In Scripture
In Bless, St. Martin of Tours’s words appear in the comments beside these verses. This page’s labels say how each is linked: “on this verse” means the saint wrote about that very verse; “on this theme” means the quotation shares its theme. Scripture is quoted from the Catholic Public Domain Version.
On this theme
For I am constrained between the two: having a desire to be dissolved and to be with Christ, which is the far better thing, but then to remain in the flesh is necessary for your sake.
Philippians 1:23–24 · CPDV Beside their words: “Lord, if I am still necessary to thy people, I do not refuse the toil: thy will be done.”
In the calendar
The upcoming dates, through December 31, 2028, when Bless’s Today screen shows St. Martin of Tours. Where the US calendar keeps another celebration that day, it is named instead and no rank is given.
Readings
No dates are left in Bless’s published calendar, which runs through December 31, 2028. St. Martin of Tours keeps November 11 in Bless’s calendar of saints: see the saints of November.
All the saints of November Born on November 11? A saint for every day
Spotted a mistake in a date, a patronage or a quotation? Report an error and we’ll fix it in the app and here.