Blessed John Paul II once said: "To die for the faith is a gift for some, to live the faith is a gift for all." Those who have actually spilled their blood for the faith are known as red martyrs. If it was not for these martyrs who realized the authenticity of Christ's Death, Resurrection, and Ascension into Heaven we probably would not have a Church today. If they were not so sure of the truth of the Gospel they never would of put their lives on the line in the name of Christ. Red martyrs come from all time periods of Christianity and receive representation from the apostles who knew Christ, early popes of the Church, and men and women from many nations where the faith was persecuted to the point of death. We see a glimpse into martyrdom in our reading from second Maccabees where these seven brothers and their mother were arrested and put to death for their Jewish faith. In captivity they suffered and were persecuted, but they knew with death they had the hope of everlasting life. All Christian martyrs shared in this same understanding.
Of course for us who find ourselves here today we probably will never be called to red martyrdom. Nor should we wander about trying to put ourself in the situation of being put to the death for the faith because this is spiritual pride. Despite this fact we are still called to become martyrs through what is referred to as white martyrdom. Martyrs of this category do not spill their blood for the faith, but instead are so convinced of the truth of the faith that they put to death each inclination inside of their lives that leads to the death of sin. Of course this complete surrender to Christ does not come easily and therefore is not something that can be taken lightly. If this is taken lightly we will never allow ourselves to undergo the death of white martyrdom and instead will remain slaves to this world in some way. In Saint Paul's letter to the Thessalonians we are told that our hearts will be encouraged and will be strengthened in every good deed and word. In our struggle with putting sin to death entirely we must remember this.
For both red martyrs and white martyrs their desire to die for the faith was based on the belief of the Resurrection of the Body. Without this key element to the faith there would of been no purpose for belief or for change in one' way of life. Without the resurrection Christ would only be purely human and his death would have caused nothing for our salvation. Yes his words gave plenty of good moral examples, but based on these alone there would be no reason for change especially the acceptance of death. Instead the resurrection signals that this man was God and that his death upon the cross was not done in vain, but was a sacrifice offered on behalf of all our sins. In our Gospel Jesus is pointing towards the importance of the resurrection of the body. His words address the Sadducees who did not believe in the resurrection and challenged them towards the true hope that would be found with this tenant of faith. May we allow ourselves to have faith and hope based upon the resurrection because here we will find the reason to die to self.
With our faith and hope based upon the resurrection we are able to see what all martyrs of the faith have died for. The red martyrs were willing to spill their blood with their hope placed here because the faith was truly important to die for. All white martyrs put their false selves to death through the faith that was placed here because they knew that they had something greater then the passing world to base their life upon. When we realize the importance of the resurrection we to should be inspired to put to death each disordered element inside of our life. We should desire to endure white martyrdom because through this action we will be making Heaven manifest while here on this earth. Each day we should not accept the disorder of sin, but instead be willing to accept the proper order which always orients us towards God. If this will ever be possible for us to achieve during this life we must place our trust in the resurrection like all the martyrs have done because here we will encounter true faith and hope.
If we can bring ourselves to realize that the cross is not the end we can always find hope within the resurrection. The brutal death of the martyrs was not their end, but instead was their welcoming to life everlasting. Despite how hard it was for the white martyrs to strip away all sin from their life, something more stable then the passing of pleasures would come with the resurrection. The resurrection shows us that the gift of faith is for all of us. It shows us that there is something more to this world then chasing after disordered pleasures and also promises us that something greater will come then the sickness, death, and rejection that we might feel on a daily basis. With the resurrection we can take a glimpse into Heaven and in return see the necessity to turn away from any sin that might be present inside of our lives. In Heaven there will be no room for sin, so may we endure a white martyrdom where we cast our sinfulness away totally through fasting, prayer, and trust placed inside of the sacraments especially confession and the Holy Eucharist. Strengthened by these in the light of the resurrection we will be able to endure the white martyrdom of the saints.
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