 |
| The Girdle of Thomas, Virgin's Girdle, Holy Belt, or Sacra Cintola in modern Italian,[1] is a Christianrelic in the form of a "girdle" or knotted textile cord used as a belt, that according to a medieval legendwas dropped by the Virgin Mary from the sky to SaintThomas the Apostle at or around the time of theAssumption of Mary to heaven. (Wikipedia) |
Published on 2 Jul 2014
A BRIEF HISTORY OF SAINT THOMAS - The Apostle
The Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of St. Thomas the Apostle on July 3 every year. He is best known in religious accounts as "Doubting Thomas" because of his initial unwillingness to believe the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Catholic faithful are familiar with the Biblical story of the apostle's later encounter with the Risen Christ, who asked him to place his finger at the mark of the nails on His pierced hands and side. St. Thomas then turned from his doubt and embraced the truth of the resurrection.
On September 27, 2006, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI said that Apostle Thomas' case is important for three reasons: "First, it comforts us in our insecurity; second, it shows us that every doubt can lead to an outcome brighter than any uncertainty; and third, the words that Jesus addressed to him remind us of the true meaning of mature faith and encourage us to persevere, despite the difficulty, along our journey of adhesion to him."
St. Thomas was one of fishermen on the Lake of Galilee who Jesus Christ called to be His Apostles. He became a dedicated follower of Christ. After the Pentecost, when the apostles went their separate ways, he set off on missionary work and, according to tradition, he preached the Good News to the Parthians, Persians, and Medes, until he reached India, where he evangelized and built with his bare hands a house of God at the Malabar coast, which today boasts of a large native population who call themselves St. Thomas Christians or Nasranis. After his martyrdom in 72 AD, he was buried near the site of his death, and a grand church that still stands today was built to house his tomb.
St. Thomas' relics were enshrined in Mesopotamia in the 3rd century, and later moved to various places. In 1258, some of the relics were brought to Abruzzo in Ortona, Italy, where they were venerated in the Church of St. Thomas the Apostle. He is regarded as patron saint of India and patron saint of architects and builders as well.
When the feast of St. Thomas was included in the Roman calendar in the 9th century, it was assigned to December 21, the date of his martyrdom. The "Martyrology of St. Jerome" mentioned the apostle on July 3, the date to which the Roman celebration was transferred in 1969, so that it would no longer interfere with the days of Advent. July 3 was the day on which his relics were transferred from Mylapore on the coast of Chennai (Madras) in India, to the city of Edessa in Mesopotamia.
The Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of St. Thomas the Apostle on July 3 every year. He is best known in religious accounts as "Doubting Thomas" because of his initial unwillingness to believe the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Catholic faithful are familiar with the Biblical story of the apostle's later encounter with the Risen Christ, who asked him to place his finger at the mark of the nails on His pierced hands and side. St. Thomas then turned from his doubt and embraced the truth of the resurrection.
 |
| Palma Vecchio, Assumption of Mary, who is removing her belt as Thomas (above the head of the apostle in green) hurries to the scene |
St. Thomas was one of fishermen on the Lake of Galilee who Jesus Christ called to be His Apostles. He became a dedicated follower of Christ. After the Pentecost, when the apostles went their separate ways, he set off on missionary work and, according to tradition, he preached the Good News to the Parthians, Persians, and Medes, until he reached India, where he evangelized and built with his bare hands a house of God at the Malabar coast, which today boasts of a large native population who call themselves St. Thomas Christians or Nasranis. After his martyrdom in 72 AD, he was buried near the site of his death, and a grand church that still stands today was built to house his tomb.
St. Thomas' relics were enshrined in Mesopotamia in the 3rd century, and later moved to various places. In 1258, some of the relics were brought to Abruzzo in Ortona, Italy, where they were venerated in the Church of St. Thomas the Apostle. He is regarded as patron saint of India and patron saint of architects and builders as well.
When the feast of St. Thomas was included in the Roman calendar in the 9th century, it was assigned to December 21, the date of his martyrdom. The "Martyrology of St. Jerome" mentioned the apostle on July 3, the date to which the Roman celebration was transferred in 1969, so that it would no longer interfere with the days of Advent. July 3 was the day on which his relics were transferred from Mylapore on the coast of Chennai (Madras) in India, to the city of Edessa in Mesopotamia.
Youtube..........
iBrevjary Jujy 3,
RESPONSORY
John 15:15; Matthew 13:11, 16
I no longer call you servants, but my friends,
– for I have shared with you everything
I have heard from my Father.
The mysteries of the kingdom of heaven have been revealed to you;
blessed are your eyes because they see
and your ears because they hear.
– For I have shared with you everything
I have heard from my Father.
RESPONSORY
John 15:15; Matthew 13:11, 16
I no longer call you servants, but my friends,
– for I have shared with you everything
I have heard from my Father.
The mysteries of the kingdom of heaven have been revealed to you;
blessed are your eyes because they see
and your ears because they hear.
– For I have shared with you everything
I have heard from my Father.
SECOND READING
From a homily on the Gospels by Saint Gregory the Great, pope
(Hom. 26, 7-9: PL 76, 1201-1202)
My Lord and my God
Thomas, one of the twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came.He was the only disciple absent; on his return he heard what had happened but refused to believe it. The Lord came a second time; he offered his side for the disbelieving disciple to touch, held out his hands, and showing the scars of his wounds, healed the wound of his disbelief.
Dearly beloved, what do you see in these events? Do you really believe that it was by chance that this chosen disciple was absent, then came and heard, heard and doubted, doubted and touched, touched and believed? It was not by chance but in God’s providence. In a marvelous way God’s mercy arranged that the disbelieving disciple, in touching the wounds of his master’s body, should heal our wounds of disbelief. The disbelief of Thomas has done more for our faith than the faith of the other disciples. As he touches Christ and is won over to belief, every doubt is cast aside and our faith is strengthened. So the disciple who doubted, then felt Christ’s wounds, becomes a witness to the reality of the resurrection.
Touching Christ, he cried out: My Lord and my God. Jesus said to him: Because you have seen me, Thomas, you have believed. Paul said: Faith is the guarantee of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen. It is clear, then, that faith is the proof of what can not be seen. What is seen gives knowledge, not faith. When Thomas saw and touched, why was he told: You have believed because you have seen me? Because what he saw and what he believed were different things. God cannot be seen by mortal man. Thomas saw a human being, whom he acknowledged to be God, and said: My Lord and my God. Seeing, he believed; looking at one who was true man, he cried out that this was God, the God he could not see.
What follows is reason for great joy: Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed. There is here a particular reference to ourselves; we hold in our hearts one we have not seen in the flesh. We are included in these words, but only if we follow up our faith with good works. The true believer practices what he believes. But of those who pay only lip service to faith, Paul has this to say: They profess to know God, but they deny him in their works. Therefore James says:Faith without works is dead.
RESPONSORY
1 John 1:2, 1
This life was made visible;
we have seen it and we proclaim to you
– the eternal life which was with the Father
and has appeared to us.
We have seen it with our own eyes
and with our own hands we have touched the Word of life;
what we have seen and heard we declare to you.
– The eternal life which was with the Father
and has appeared to us.
No comments:
Post a Comment