Jan 24, 2010 / 02:46 am
This Thursday, the Church will celebrate the feast of St. Thomas Aquinas, a Doctor of the Church who was nicknamed “the Dumb Ox” because of his silence and size.
When most people think of St. Thomas Aquinas, they think of the Summa Theologica, however the saint wrote much more than the one thick book in his short lifetime.
Thomas was born in Italy to a well-connected, wealthy family who sent him to be educated by the monks at the abbey of Monte Cassino. The boy was quite astute, and surprised his preceptor by asking, “What is God?”
Eventually the young Aquinas chose to enter the Dominican order. His family, however, did not approve of his action, and took such drastic steps such as having him detained by relatives who were soldiers and sending an impure woman to tempt him. The saint was able to overcome the temptation and was eventually able to pursue his vocation.