Day: July 3, 2019

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, ON the SAINTS, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on FAITH, SAINT of the DAY, The APOSTLES & EVANGELISTS

Thought for the Day – 3 July – ‘..The God he could not see’

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 3 July – Feast of St Thomas Apostle

“My Lord and My God”

Saint Pope Gregory the Great (540-604)
Bishop of Rome and Great Western Father and Doctor of the Church

An excerpt from his Homily 26

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 marvellous 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 cannot 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.seeing he believed - st pope gregory - 3 july 2019 st thomas.jpg

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.

St Thomas, Pray for Us!st thomas apostle of christ pray for us 3 july 2019.jpg

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Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on FAITH, SAINT of the DAY, The APOSTLES & EVANGELISTS, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 3 July – Faith

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Quote/s of the Day – 3 July – Feast of St Thomas Apostle, Gospel John 20:24–29

“Faith is the guarantee
of things hoped for,
the evidence
of things unseen.”

Hebrews 11:1hebrews 11 1 - faith is the thing hoped for the guarantee of things unseen 3 july 2019 st thomas.jpg

“This was, therefore, a work of divine providence,
that the separation of the disciple,
would become a harbinger of increasing safety and surety.
For if Thomas had not been absent,
he would not have doubted
and, if he would not have doubted,
he would not have sought strangely
and, if he would not have sought,
he would not have felt
and, if he would not have felt,
he would not have been convinced
of the Lord and God
and, if he did not call Him Lord and God,
then neither would we have been taught
to hymn Him thus.
For Thomas, by not being present,
has led us towards the truth and later,
became more confirmed regarding the faith.”

St John Chrysostom (347-407) Father and Doctorthis was therefore a work of divine providence, st john chryosstom feat of st thomas 3 july 2919.jpg

Posted in FATHERS of the Church, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, MORNING Prayers, ON the SAINTS, QUOTES - J R R Tolkien and MORE, QUOTES on FAITH, SAINT of the DAY, The APOSTLES & EVANGELISTS, The RESURRECTION, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 3 July – “Happy are those who have not seen and yet believe!”.

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One Minute Reflection – 3 July – Feast of St Thomas Apostle, Gospel John 20:24–29

Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”…John 20:28john 20 28 my lord and my god feat of st thomas 3 july 2019.jpg

REFLECTION – “Put your finger into the marks of the nails”.   You looked for Me when I wasn’t there, now take advantage of it.   I understand your desire despite your silence. Before you tell Me them I already know your thoughts.   I heard you speak and, even though unseen, I was beside you, beside your doubts.   Without revealing Myself I made you wait, so as better to consider your eagerness.   “Put your finger into the marks of the nails.   Put your hand into my side, do not be unbelieving any longer, but believe.”
Then Thomas touched Him and all his mistrust fell away.   Full of genuine faith and all the love owing to God, he cried out:  “My Lord and my God!”   And the Lord said to him – “You believe because you have seen me;  happy are those who have not seen and yet believe!”   Thomas took the news of the Resurrection to those who had not seen.   Draw the whole earth to believe, not by its own sight but at your word.   Go through peoples and cities far away.   Teach them to carry the cross rather than weapons on their shoulders.   Only proclaim me – they will believe and worship.   They will demand no other proof.   Tell them they are called by grace and, with your own eyes, behold their faith.   Truly, blessed are those who did not see and yet believed!
This is the army the Lord raises, these are the children of the baptismal font, the works of grace, the fruit of the Spirit.   They have followed Christ without having seen Him, they sought Him and believed.   They recognised Him with the eyes of faith not those of the body.   They have not put their finger into the mark of the nails but they have bound themselves to His cross and embraced His sufferings.   They have not seen the Lord’s side but, by grace, they have become members of His body and have made His words their own:  “Happy are those who have not seen and yet believe!”… Basil of Seleucia (Died c 468) Bishop – Sermon for the Resurrection, 1-4this is the army the lord raises - basil of seleucia feast of st thomas 3 july 2019.jpg

PRAYER – Almighty Father,as we honour Thomas the Apostle, let us always experience the help of his prayers. May we have eternal life by believing in Jesus,
whom Thomas acknowledged as Lord, for He lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amenst thomas pray for us 2.jpg

Posted in BREVIARY Prayers, CATHOLIC-PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, HYMNS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, SAINT of the DAY, The APOSTLES & EVANGELISTS

Our Morning Offering – 3 July – O Fathers of Our Ancient Faith

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Our Morning Offering – 3 July – Feast of St Thomas Apostle

O Fathers of Our Ancient Faith

O Fathers of our ancient faith,
With all the heav’n, we sing your fame
Whose sound went forth in all the earth
To tell of Christ and bless His name.

You took the gospel to the poor,
The Word of God alight in you,
Which in our day is told again,
That timeless Word, forever new.

You told of God, who died for us
And out of death triumphant rose,
Who gave the truth that made us free
and changeless through the ages goes.

Praise Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
Whos gift is faith that never dies,
A light in darkness now, until
The day-star in our hearts arise.

O Fathers of Our Ancient Faith is written by the Benedictine Nuns of Stanbrook Abbey.   In the Divine Office (1974) it is sung at Morning Prayer in the Common of Apostles.   It is set to the anonymous tune associated with the 7th century Latin hymn, Creator Alme Siderum.o fathers of our ancient faith - feast of st thomas 3 july 2019 breviary hymn.jpg

Posted in SAINT of the DAY, The APOSTLES & EVANGELISTS

Feast of St Thomas, Apostle of Christ, Martyr – 3 July

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Feast of St Thomas, Apostle of Christ, Martyr – 3 JulyST THOMAS APOSTLE.jpg

There is very little about the Apostle Thomas in the Gospels, one text calls him the “twin.” Rarely during Jesus’ lifetime does he stand out among his colleagues.   There is the instance before the raising of Lazarus, when Jesus was still in Perea and Thomas exclaimed:  “Let us also go and die with Him.”

Best-known is his expression of unbelief after the Saviour’s death, giving rise to the phrase “doubting Thomas.”   Nevertheless, the passage describing the incident, had as today’s Gospel, must be numbered among the most touching in Sacred Scripture, “My Lord and my God!”thomas apostle.jpg

In the Breviary lessons St Pope Gregory the Great makes the following reflections: “Thomas’ unbelief has benefited our faith more than the belief of the other disciples, it is because he attained faith, through physical touch, that we are confirmed in the faith beyond all doubt.   Indeed, the Lord permitted the Apostle to doubt after the resurrection but He did not abandon him in doubt.   By his doubt and by his touching the sacred wounds, the Apostle became a witness to the truth of the Resurrection.   Thomas touched and cried out – My Lord and my God!   And Jesus said to him – Because you have seen Me, Thomas, you have believed.   Now if Thomas saw and touched the Saviour, why did Jesus say: Because you have seen Me, Thomas, you have believed?   Because he saw something other than what he believed.   For no mortal man can see divinity.   Thomas saw the Man Christ and acknowledged His divinity with the words – My Lord and my God.   Faith, therefore, followed upon seeing.”

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Concerning later events in the Apostle’s life, very meagre information exists.   The Martyrology has this:  “At Calamina (near Madras in India) the Martyrdom of the Apostle Thomas – he announced the Gospel to the Parthians and, finally, came to India.   After he had converted numerous tribes to Christianity, he was pierced with lances at the king’s command.”

Excerpted from The Church’s Year of Grace, Pius Parschst_thomasApóstolofmichie(4).jpg

Posted in SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 3 July – St Pope Leo II (611–683)

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Saint of the Day – 3 July – St Pope Leo II (611–683) was Bishop of Rome from 17 August 682 to 28 June 683, the day of his death.   He is one of the popes of the Byzantine Papacy.Leo_II

Pope Leo II was a Sicilian.   He was learned in sacred and profane letters, as also in the Greek and Latin tongues and was, moreover, an excellent musician.   He rearranged and improved the music of the sacred hymns and psalms used in the Church. st pope leo II snip alamy

He approved the acts of the sixth General Council, which was held at Constantinople, under the presidency of the legates of the apostolic see, in the presence of the emperor Constantine, the Patriarchs of Constantinople and Antioch and one hundred and seventy bishops – Leo also translated these said acts into Latin.

It was in this Council that Cyrus, Sergius, and Pyrrhus were condemned for teaching that there is in Christ, only one will and one operation.   Leo broke the pride of the Archbishops of Ravenna, who had puffed themselves up, under the power of the exarchs, to set at naught the power of the apostolic see.   Wherefore, he decreed that the elections of the clergy of Ravenna should be worth nothing, until they had been confirmed by the authority of the Bishop of Rome.st pope leo II sml

He was a true father to the poor.   Not by money only but by his deeds, his labours and his advice, he relieved the poverty and loneliness of widows and orphans.   He was leading all to live holy and godly lives, not by mere preaching but by his own life, when he died in the year 683, he had been Pope eleven months.   He was buried in the church of Saint Peter.

St Leo was originally buried in his own monument, however, some years after his death, his remains were put into a tomb that contained the first four of his papal namesakes.st LeoII

Excerpted from The Liturgical Year, Abbot Gueranger OSB

Posted in MARTYRS, SAINT of the DAY, The APOSTLES & EVANGELISTS, YouTube VIDEOS

Feast of St Thomas and Memorials of the Saints – 3 July

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St Thomas the Apostle (Feast)

St Thomas:   https://anastpaul.com/2018/07/03/saint-of-the-day-feast-of-st-thomas-apostle-of-christ/

St Anatolius of Alexandria
St Anatolius of Constantinople
Bl Andreas Ebersbach
Bl Barbara Jeong Sun-mae
St Bladus
St Byblig
St Cillene
St Dathus of Ravenna
St Eusebius of Laodicea
St Firminus
St Firmus
Bl Gelduin
St Germanus of Man
St Giuse Nguyen Ðình Uyen
St Gunthiern
St Guthagon
St Heliodorus of Altinum
St Hyacinth of Caesarea
St Ioannes Baptista Zhao Mingxi
St Irenaeus of Chiusi
St Pope Leo II (611–683)
St Maelmuire O’Gorman
St Mark of Mesia
St Mennone the Centurian
St Mucian of Mesia
St Paul of Mesia
St Petrus Zhao Mingzhen
St Philiphê Phan Van Minh
St Raymond of Toulouse
—
Martyrs of Alexandria – 13 saints: Thirteen Christian companions marytred together. No details about them have survived but the names – Apricus, Cyrion (2 of), Eulogius, Hemerion, Julian, Julius, Justus, Menelaus, Orestes, Porfyrios and Tryphon (2 of). They martyred in Alexandria, Egypt, date unknown.

Martyrs of Constantinople – 24 saints: A group of 24 Christians martyred in the persecutions of Arian emperor Valens. We know little more than their names – Acacios, Amedinos, Ammonius, Ammus, Cerealis, Cionia, Cionius, Cyrianus, Demetrius, Eulogius (2), Euphemia, Heliodoros, Heraclios, Horestes, Jocundus, Julian, Martyrios, Menelaeus, Sestratus, Strategos, Thomas, Timotheos and Tryphon. They were martyred in c367 in Constantintinople.

Theodotus and Companions – 6 saints: Six Christians who were imprisoned, tortured and martyred together in the persecutions of Trajan. Saint Hyacinth ministered to them in prison. We know nothing else about them but their names – Asclepiodotus, Diomedes, Eulampius, Golinduchus, Theodota and Theodotus. They were beheaded in c110, location unknown.