3
July. Day of Remembrance:
Thomas the Evangelist & Apologist.
Mr. Graves gives his angle on
an ancient story.
Graves, Dan. “St. Thomas.”
Christianity.com. Jun 2007.
http://www.christianity.com/church/church-history/timeline/1-300/st-thomas-11629563.html. Accessed 5 May 2014.
The Brahmin
priests were furious. A man named Thomas had come to India from the west,
preaching a new religion. Thousands of people were going over to this strange
new teaching. And a foolish cult it was, too. It had as its hero a crucified
criminal, whom Thomas claimed was raised to life. But people will believe
anything! The priests' control over minds was in danger; this meant danger to
their incomes, too. Thomas must be gotten out of the way!
Today, July 3, is the feast of St Thomas in
the Roman Church. Thomas was one of Christ's twelve apostles. His name is
mentioned by all four gospel writers, some of whom call him "the
twin," but John is the only one who tells us anything that Thomas said or
did.
When we first
hear Thomas speak, Jesus has just learned of the death of Lazarus. Jesus
declares he will go to visit Mary and Martha, but the other disciples protest.
Hadn't the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem just tried to kill him! But Thomas takes
his master's side. Heroically he says, "Let us go, even if we have to die
with him" (John 11:16). He would prove his bravery again and again in his
later career.
Thomas next
spoke up at the Last Supper. When Jesus said he must go to the Father, Thomas
admitted his ignorance. "I don't know where you are going or the way
there," he says. In reply, Jesus uttered one of his greatest sayings:
"I am
the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father but through me. If
you had known me, you would have known my Father also; but from now on you know
him and have seen him" (John 14:6).
Finally,
after Christ rose from the dead, he showed himself to the disciples. Thomas
alone missed that meeting. When the other disciples reported that Jesus had
appeared to them, Thomas said he would not believe unless he saw the nail
prints in his hands and touched his wounded side. Later, Jesus did appear to
Thomas and showed him those wounds.
Thomas
immediately understood the implications. God the Father, by raising Christ from
the dead, proved that Christ was all he claimed to be. Thomas fell before Jesus
declaring him "My Lord and my God" (John 20:28). This is one of the
most triumphant testimonies of faith in the Bible.
After the
Holy Spirit came upon the apostles, Thomas carried the gospel eastward. Strong
traditions link his name with Iran and India. All agree that he was martyred.
Thomas
probably died in India, at Mylapore near Madras (Chennai). According to the
best record we have, an angry pagan priest drove a spear through his body while
he knelt in prayer. Unfortunately, Portuguese adventurers destroyed precious
documents that might have shed light on Thomas' history. The Portuguese thought
that the Christians of Malabar were
heretics. And so the writings of Christians who have an ancient church named
for Thomas and who can point to a tomb where he was buried, are lost forever.
Bibliography:
1. Butler, Alban. Lives of the Saints. (Various
editions).
2. Lockyer, Herbert. All the Apostles of the Bible. Grand
Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 1972.
3. McBirnie, William Steuart. The Search for the Twelve Apostles.
Wheaton, Illinois: Tyndale House, 1973.
4. "Thomas, St." The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church.
Edited by F. L. Cross and E. A. Livingstone. Oxford, 1997.
5. Thurston, Herbert. "St. Thomas the Apostle." Catholic
Encyclopedia. New York: Appleton, 1914.
6. Tisserant, Eugène, Cardinal. Eastern Christianity in India; a history of the Syro-Malabar Church from the earliest time
to the present day. Authorized adaptation from the French by E.R.
Hambye. Westminster, Maryland., Newman Press, 1957.
7. Vigeveno, H. S. Thirteen Men Who Changed the World.
Glendale, California: Regal, 1966.
Last updated June, 2007
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