St. Martin I

Pope Martin defended the truth about Christ's human and divine wills, then endured arrest, humiliation, exile, and death.

The story

Martin was born around 590 at Todi in Umbria. Before becoming pope, he served the Church of Rome as a deacon and as a papal representative at Constantinople. He was elected pope in July 649. His consecration took place without waiting for confirmation from the Byzantine emperor, whose government claimed authority in the matter. This sharpened tensions between Rome and Emperor Constans II.

The central dispute concerned Monothelitism, which held that Christ possessed only one will. Catholic teaching confesses that the one divine Person of Christ has both a divine will and a human will, corresponding to his two natures. In October 649, Martin gathered more than one hundred bishops at the Lateran Council in Rome. The council rejected Monothelitism and condemned imperial formulas that tried to silence discussion of Christ's wills. Martin circulated the council's acts and defended its teaching despite imperial opposition. The doctrine was later solemnly confirmed by the Third Council of Constantinople in 680 and 681.

Constans II ordered Martin's arrest. On June 17, 653, imperial troops seized the sick pope at the Lateran Basilica. He was carried by sea to Constantinople under harsh conditions. There he was accused of treason rather than openly tried for his doctrinal stand. In December 653, Martin was publicly stripped of his ecclesiastical clothing, loaded with chains, and exposed to humiliation before being imprisoned. He was threatened with execution, but the sentence was commuted.

Martin was eventually exiled to Cherson in Crimea. He suffered from hunger, illness, cold, and abandonment. Letters from exile describe his material distress and his sorrow that few friends in Rome remembered him. He did not withdraw his confession of faith. Martin died at Cherson on September 16, 655, as a result of the hardships he had endured. He was honored as a martyr by ancient Christian tradition and was the last pope to receive that title because of persecution by an imperial government. His optional memorial is observed in the General Roman Calendar on April 13.

What Martin teaches

St. Martin I teaches that fidelity to revealed truth may demand personal suffering and public courage. Doctrine about Christ is not an abstract argument, because salvation depends upon who Christ truly is. Martyrdom is the supreme witness given to the truth of the faith (CCC 2473).

Patronage

popes, Christian exiles, prisoners, those persecuted for the faith.

Prayer

Almighty God, you gave St. Martin courage to confess the truth about your Son. Through his intercession, strengthen the pope, protect persecuted Christians, and keep us faithful when truth carries a cost. Amen.