FD of St Martin de Porres, the son of a free black woman and a Spanish nobleman in Lima who rejected his "mulatto" son. He joined the Dominicans as a lay helper, but gradually won respect for his healing powers, his extraordinary spiritual gifts, and his embodiment of the gospel.
Conversation
He cared selflessly for the sick and those counted as nothing: Indians, the poor, African slaves. His ministry extended to animals, with whom he could communicate. He was a living parable of "the peaceable kingdom." And yet he subjected himself to terrible penance.
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What sins could afflict the conscience of this holy brother? Slavery, the scorn heaped on the poor and the Indians, the existence of so much injustice in a supposedly Christian society. He was named the patron saint for social justice. San Martin, pray for us!
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