Saint Thomas, The Apostle

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St. Thomas in the Gospels 

              St. Thomas was a Jew and probably a Galilean of humble birth, but we are not told of the circumstances in which he was made an apostle by our Lord Jesus. His name in Syriac means the "twin"; he was also known in Greek as “Didymus”. In the Gospel of John, St. Thomas appears actively just before the account of the raising of the Lazurus from the dead. When the grieving sisters Martha and Mary sent a special messenger to Jesus, Jesus said "Let us go back to Judea". All the other apostles dissuaded Jesus from this perilous journey but St. Thomas said, "Let us all go with the Teacher too, and be killed along with him" (Jn 11:16).  Here we see the sincerity of a bold man who was determined to follow Jesus. That same commitment brought him from Judea to various places in India and to be a martyr for the millions of Indian sub-continent. 

Again, at the last supper, when Jesus revealed that he was going to leave them, it was Thomas who asked, "Lord, we do not know where Thou art going; how can we know the way there?" and Jesus answered, "I am the way; I am the truth and Life; nobody can come to the Father except through me” (Jn 14: 5-6). Generations to come will be indebted to St. Thomas for this illuminating glance into the eternal life.

However, this apostle is especially remembered for his incredulity after our Lord's resurrection and appearance to the rest of the apostles. Thomas refused to believe the apostles when they said they saw the Lord. Eight days later our Lord appeared again when Thomas was present, and at the invitation of our Lord to Thomas to feel his wounds, Thomas fell at His feet, exclaiming, "MY LORD AND MY GOD!" (Jn 20:28).
OTHER NAMES    : - "DOUBTING THOMAS",
                       - DIDYMUS, THE TWIN,
                                          - APOSTLE OF INDIA

FEAST DAY: 3RD JULY 

BORN: PANSADA IN GALILEE

OCCUPATION: FISHERMAN 

MISSIONARY ACTIVITIES: HE WENT PREACHING IN MANY COUNTRIES AND FOUNDED CHRISTIAN  
                                          CHURCHES IN PALESTINE, MESOPOTAMIA, ETHIOPIA AND INDIA

DIED: A MARTYR'S DEATH - PIERCED WITH 5 SPEARS

PATRON STATE OF: INDIA, PAKISTAN AND SRI LANKA
PATRON OF: ARCHITECTS, BUILDERS, CONSTRUCTION WORKERS, STONECUTTERS, MASONS, 
                                          GEOMETRICIANS, BLIND PEOPLE, THEOLOGIANS, PEOPLE IN DOUBT OF FAITH.

                                                                                                                                                                               (source: St. Thomas webpage)
seterusnya:  >>>sejarah Paroki St. Thomas, Kuantan