Saint Martin

St Martin helping a beggar, in a play by Maltese children

Born in 316 AD in Pannonia , a region that belonged to Hungary, Martin wanted to live as a monk, but was made a Bishop. He was born just after the persecutions had ended in 313 AD, and so did not see much torture. However it was not easy to live as a Christian. All we know about St Martin came to us through Sulpicius Severus, who once knocked on Martin’s door as a beggar. Martin welcomed him, washed his hands and his feet and treated him with kindness. Sulpicius became Martin's disciple, as well as his biographer. Martin lived as a monk in Poitiers at first but then was made a Bishop of Tours in France. He was kind to everyone and the famous story about him helping a another beggar by giving him half of his cape is well documented. This scene was recently acted by a group of children in Malta in one of the local parishes.