Whether you choose St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Thomas More or St.
Thomas the Apostle to honor, respect or emulate, each of these
saintly figures has a special day in the Catholic calendar. This
is his special feast day.
A feast day, by the way, is the day the Catholic Church
officially recognizes and commemorates the contributions of a
particular saint. It originates from the traditional of honoring
the date of death of the Christian martyrs.
The Catholic Church recognizes St. Thomas Aquinas, the
patron saint of students, on January 28. Born in Aquino, Italy
circa 1125, he is also considered the model teacher for those
entering the priesthood. He seamlessly united the scholastic world
with the spiritual one as few have done.
July 3 is the feast day of St. Thomas the Didymus, one
of the original twelve apostles, from whom we get the term "doubting
Thomas." Thomas refused to believe that Christ had been resurrected
until he could touch the wound on His hand. St. Thomas the Apostle
is the patron saint of architects and builders. He is also the
patron saint of India, the region he visited as a missionary after
Jesus's assumption into heaven.
St. Thomas More, who is best remembered in the Catholic
Church as the defender of the faith against heresies, has a feast
day of June 22. It wasn't until the year 2000 that Pope John Paul
II declared St. Thomas More to be the patron saint of Statesmen
and politicians.
Each saint - including St. Thomas More, St. Thomas Aquinas and
St. Thomas the Apostle has a Feast day dedicated solely to him.
Churches world wide may choose to honor these saints in any number
of ways, including the dedication of a St. Thomas mass
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