A Dead Child Raised Among the Pagans

“I have often noticed this, Sulpitius: Martin used to tell you that so great an abundance of power was by no means granted him while he was a bishop as he remembered having had before he obtained that office. Now if this is true, or rather since it is true, we can imagine how great were the things he did while still a monk, doing them apart by himself without any witness, since we have seen him, as a bishop, do such great wonders before the eyes of all. Many of his earlier achievements, no doubt, were known to the world and could not be hidden; but those which he kept concealed, avoiding boastfulness, and did not allow to come to people’s knowledge, are said to have been countless. For since he went beyond the capacities of a mere man, he trampled on worldly glory in the awareness of his own eminence, and was content to have heaven alone as witness of his deeds. [a]

“That this is true we can judge even from the things that are well known to us and could not be hidden. For example, before he became a bishop he restored two dead men to life, events your book has treated fairly fully; but while he was bishop he raised up only one, a point I am surprised you have not noticed. I myself am a witness of this last event; but you probably have no doubts about its being properly attested. At any rate, I will set the matter before you as it happened.

“For some reason, I do not know what, we were on our way to the town of the Carnutes. Meanwhile, as we passed a village with a very large population, an enormous crowd came out to meet us, made up entirely of pagans; for no one in that village knew a Christian. Yet at the report that so great a man was coming, a multitude streaming to one spot had filled all the wide plains. Martin sensed that some work was to be done, and as the spirit within him moved him, he was deeply stirred. At once he began to preach to the pagans the word of God, so utterly different from the word of man, often groaning that so great a crowd should not know the Lord the Savior.

“Meanwhile, as an incredible multitude surrounded us, a certain woman whose son had recently died began to hold out the lifeless body to the blessed man with outstretched hands, saying: ‘We know that you are a friend of God. Give me back my son, who is my only one.’ The rest of the multitude joined her and added their entreaties to the mother’s. Martin saw, as he told us afterward, that he could show power for the salvation of those waiting to see it. He took the body of the dead child into his own hands; and when, in the sight of all, he had fallen on his knees, and then risen again with his prayer finished, he gave the child back to its mother restored to life.

“Then indeed the whole multitude raised a shout to heaven and acknowledged Christ as God, and at last began to rush in crowds to the blessed man’s knees, earnestly begging him to make them Christians. Nor did he delay to do so. There in the middle of the plain he made them all catechumens, by laying his hand on the whole of them. At the same time, turning to us, he said that it was not without reason that they were made catechumens on that plain where the martyrs used to be consecrated.”