Feast of St. Thomas the Apostle

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Thursday, 3 July 2025 : Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Thomas the Apostle, one of the members of the Twelve Apostles, the innermost circle of the Lord’s disciples and followers. St. Thomas was particularly known as one who often doubted the Lord, and was known as St. Thomas Didymus or the Twin, probably because he might have had a twin brother, and he was always the skeptical one amongst the disciples of the Lord, as if we read through the other parts of the Gospels, we can see how he was always first to question the Lord and His decisions, and this continued on even after the Lord had risen from the dead, just as we have heard from our Gospel passage today.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Church and the faithful in Ephesus, the Apostle speaking about how each and every one of us as God’s holy and beloved people have been made to be the Holy Temple of God, the Temple and House of His Holy Presence, and we have become parts of the Church, the stones and foundations of the Church of God together with the Apostles and the other disciples of the Lord, the saints, the martyrs and all the other holy people of God, past and present. Through this reading we are all reminded that each and every one of us share in the same mission which the Lord has entrusted to His Apostles, in proclaiming the Word of God, the Good News of salvation and in calling all the people of all the nations to God.

We are reminded that just as we celebrate the memory of the great Apostle St. Thomas, celebrating the great faith and dedication by which he had committed himself to the missions entrusted to him, we should be inspired by those same examples and actions, all the love and commitment which St. Thomas and the other Apostles, and the many other holy saints, holy men and women of God have shown us. We must realise that they all did not do their great works alone on their own, but working together with one another in achieving their goals, in supporting one another in the good efforts and endeavours that we are carrying out for the greater glory of God. We have to be active in carrying out our own ministry and works in our respective communities of the faithful, at all times.

Then from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. John the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the moment when St. Thomas himself, who at first doubted the Resurrection of the Lord, encountered the Risen Lord in person. He was not there in the room together with the other Apostles and disciples when the Lord first appeared to them in His Risen glory, and he refused to believe when the other Apostles and disciples tried to convince him that the Lord had indeed risen from the dead. St. Thomas, ever the doubter, refused to believe even when everyone else had believed, and challenged the Lord to appear before him and showing him the signs of His Resurrection and how He was indeed truly the One Who had been crucified and then rose from the dead as the others had claimed.

But the Risen Lord appeared before him and the others, and asked St. Thomas to do everything as he has asked and demanded of Him, and that was when St. Thomas, humbled and amazed by the truth, finally broke free from his unbelief and doubt, from his stubbornness and disobedience, and in a powerful public expression of faith, he declared before everyone, ‘My Lord and my God’, and these words if we remember and realise, each one of us also speak of at every moment when the bread and wine, which have been offered at the Holy Mass, have been consecrated and turned into the very Essence and reality of the Most Holy Body and Blood of the Lord Himself, and which we therefore believe without a doubt, as a core and most central tenet of our faith even when we cannot see Him truly as how the Apostles had seen Him.

According to Apostolic tradition, after the Lord’s Ascension into Heaven and the coming of the Holy Spirit, St. Thomas was actively involved in the works of evangelisation and the spreading of the Christian faith and the Good News of God. St. Thomas was commonly associated with the evangelisation efforts in India, where the community of Christians that originated all the way from the time of St. Thomas’ ministry remains till this very day, also known as ‘St. Thomas Christians’, in the maritime regions of southern India where St. Thomas had apparently visited and ministered in. St. Thomas spent many years proclaiming the Good News of God to those people who have not yet known Him, patiently reaching out to those who have not been willing to listen to the words of the truth.

And thanks to his great works, many were turned towards the Lord and became believers, no longer walking in the darkness and ignorance of God’s truth, but receiving through the words, actions and works of St. Thomas, the grace of everlasting life and true happiness with God. He endured many trials and struggles just as he encountered many successes, difficulties and challenges just as he has earned many great conversions to the one true faith in God. Eventually, like most of the other Apostles and many of the Lord’s other disciples, St. Thomas also faced persecution and martyrdom, giving up his life in great suffering after he has proven his faith to the very end, from someone who have always doubted the Lord to someone who was willing to die for his faith in Him. His examples and dedication, his change of heart should indeed inspire all of us in our own faith and lives.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore be inspired by the great examples which St. Thomas the Apostle has shown us, all the dedication, commitment and love which he has done throughout his life, in devoting his time and effort to spread the Good News, the Gospel of Christ, His salvation and assurance to more and more people. May all of us be strengthened in our own faith and devotion, doing our best to follow the examples of the Apostles and the saints, particularly that of St. Thomas the Apostle, in serving the Lord at all times, as best as we can. May God be with us always and bless our every good endeavours. Amen.

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Thursday, 3 July 2025 : Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

John 20 : 24-29

At that time, Thomas, the Twin, one of the Twelve, was not with the other Eleven when Jesus came. The other disciples told Him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he replied, “Until I have seen in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in His side, I will not believe.”

Eight days later, the disciples were again inside the house and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you!” Then He said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see My hands; stretch out your hand, and put it into My side. Do not continue in your unbelief, but believe!”

Thomas said, “You are my Lord and my God.” Jesus replied, “You believe because you see Me, do you not? Happy are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”

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Thursday, 3 July 2025 : Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Psalm 116 : 1, 2

Alleluia! Praise YHVH, all you nations; all you peoples, praise Him.

How great is His love for us! His faithfulness lasts forever.

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Thursday, 3 July 2025 : Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Ephesians 2 : 19-22

Now, you are no longer strangers or guests, but fellow citizens of the holy people : you are of the household of God. You are the house, whose foundations are the Apostles and prophets, and whose cornerstone is Christ Jesus. In Him, the whole structure is joined together, and rises, to be a holy Temple, in the Lord.

In Him, you, too, are being built, to become the spiritual Sanctuary of God.

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Wednesday, 3 July 2024 : Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Thomas the Apostle, one of the Twelve Apostles of the Lord, also known as Thomas Didymus or Thomas the Twin. He was quite known in the Gospels as a figure who was always a doubter, a pessimistic person and disciple of the Lord, who always threw out doubts and questions against the Lord and His works and decisions. For example, at the time just before the Lord was about to embark on His last journey and Passion in Jerusalem, to face the moment of His sufferings, crucifixion and death, He told His disciples of His plan to return once again to Judea and Jerusalem despite the opposition and the threats which He had faced from the Pharisees and the chief priests, which St. Thomas replied rather sarcastically saying that they should all indeed follow the Lord to their deaths.

Then, we also heard in today’s Gospel reading from the moment after the Lord’s Resurrection from the dead, of how St. Thomas refused to believe in the Risen Lord despite all the other disciples of the Lord having told him that they had seen the Risen Lord Himself in the flesh, appearing before them shortly after His Resurrection at Easter Sunday. St. Thomas was not there at that moment, and he therefore refused to believe, and said that unless he could prove it himself that the Lord was truly Risen from the dead, and that it was truly indeed the Lord, to the point of mentioning that unless he can place his fingers into the holes that the wounds of the nails and the spear had made on the Lord’s hands and side, that he would not believe otherwise. St. Thomas truly had that doubting side in him which became a great barrier preventing him to truly believe in the Lord, but why is that so? That is because he has yet to embrace the Lord fully at that time and earlier on, allowing himself to be swayed by his pride and ego.

This pride and ego likely made St. Thomas think that he could not be wrong in his assessment that the Resurrection was just nonsense mentioned by the other disciples, and in his naturally doubtful mind, it was indeed hard for him to accept that his pessimism about the chances of the success of the Lord’s mission could have been wrong. Thus, he asked for the signs and proofs to prove to him that the Lord did indeed rise from the dead, because his pride and ego were still holding him back from truly being able to believe in the Lord, in His Resurrection, truth and Good News. But the moment the Risen Lord Himself appeared before him and everyone else, challenging him to do whatever he had said that he would do in order to prove that it was truly the Lord Himself, Risen in body and flesh, St. Thomas was struck dumbfounded and finally professed his faith before the Lord.

The words that were spoken by St. Thomas may indeed sound familiar to all of us, ‘My Lord and my God.’ That is because these are the same words that we all say right at the moment when the priest at the Mass during the time of the Consecration as the Consecrated Host and Wine, the Most Precious Body and Blood of the Lord to all the faithful before we are to receive Him at Holy Communion. Through the hands of the priest and by the power of the Holy Spirit, we have been shown the Lord Himself truly present in His Body and Blood before us, and although the shape and the appearance remain of that bread and wine, but through our faith and belief in the doctrine of ‘Transubstantiation’, all of us believe that the Eucharist, the bread and wine are truly the Most Precious Body and the Most Precious Blood of the Lord.

Therefore, when we utter the same words which St. Thomas had mentioned, essentially that is what the Lord had told St. Thomas about those who have not seen and yet believed, and truly how they will be blessed. We may not have seen the Lord Himself in His physical form as known and recognised by the Apostles like St. Thomas when He was still walking in this world, but we still believe in Him, in His Real Presence in the Eucharist, and we profess this faith in each and every moments despite not seeing the Lord in the form that is recognisable by us as a Man. But we know that in the Most Precious Body and Blood we have received and partaken, we truly receive the Lord Himself into our being, that He truly dwells within us.

St. Thomas himself would thereafter become a very steadfast servant of God, leaving behind all of his past doubts and lack of faith, embracing a new life of ministry and commitment to God, as he went to many distant places to proclaim the truth and Good News of God’s salvation and love, facing lots of hardships, persecutions and challenges on his path and journey. St. Thomas according to many Apostolic traditions and historical evidences, went to the region which is now part of southern India, where he proclaimed the Christian faith to the local population, gaining converts and establishing the first Christian communities in that area, which would remain strong after many centuries, known as ‘St. Thomas Christians’ for long afterwards.

It was told that he also ministered to other areas like Parthia or Iran today, and also the northwestern parts of India together with St. Bartholomew, another Apostle of the Lord. He continued to carry out his missions for many decades in the region of India, until about forty years or so after the Lord’s Resurrection and Ascension, he was martyred at the place known today as St. Thomas’ Mount in Chennai, southern India. It was told that he was martyred by being pierced with a spear in that place, likely after facing oppositions from those who worshipped pagan idols and opposed the efforts of St. Thomas in spreading the Christian faith and the belief in the Risen Lord among the local populace. We see how St. Thomas’ faith and trust in the Lord had developed that he no longer doubted but trusted in the Lord so wholeheartedly that he was willing to give up his life for Him.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all rejoice in the glorious memory of St. Thomas the Apostle, holy servant of God, let us all first realise that each and every one of us are also called to be faithful to God as St. Thomas had been reminded to have faith in God. All of us are reminded to be strong in our faith in the Lord so that any doubts, persecutions, oppressions and oppositions facing us in this world will not deter us from following God wholeheartedly. And then, at the same time, we are also reminded that all of us have the same obligations and missions to continue the good works of the Apostles in proclaiming the Good News and truth of God to more and more people. All of us are reminded that we should continue to do God’s will and to carry our whatever mission He has entrusted to each one of us.

May the Lord continue to bless and guide us all in our journey through life, and may He continue to empower and strengthen us all in our faith so that despite the many trials and challenges that we have to face, we may always continue to do our best to glorify the Lord by our exemplary lives and actions, at all times. May God bless us all in our every efforts, good works and endeavours for the Lord, now and always. Amen.

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Wednesday, 3 July 2024 : Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

John 20 : 24-29

At that time, Thomas, the Twin, one of the Twelve, was not with the other Eleven when Jesus came. The other disciples told Him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he replied, “Until I have seen in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in His side, I will not believe.”

Eight days later, the disciples were again inside the house and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you!” Then He said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see My hands; stretch out your hand, and put it into My side. Do not continue in your unbelief, but believe!”

Thomas said, “You are my Lord and my God.” Jesus replied, “You believe because you see Me, do you not? Happy are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”

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Wednesday, 3 July 2024 : Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Psalm 116 : 1, 2

Alleluia! Praise YHVH, all you nations; all you peoples, praise Him.

How great is His love for us! His faithfulness lasts forever.

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Wednesday, 3 July 2024 : Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Ephesians 2 : 19-22

Now, you are no longer strangers or guests, but fellow citizens of the holy people : you are of the household of God. You are the house, whose foundations are the Apostles and prophets, and whose cornerstone is Christ Jesus. In Him, the whole structure is joined together, and rises, to be a holy Temple, in the Lord.

In Him, you, too, are being built, to become the spiritual Sanctuary of God.

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Monday, 3 July 2023 : Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the Feast of one of the great Apostles of the Lord, one of the Twelve Apostles, St. Thomas the Apostle, known as the one who doubted the Lord, His Resurrections, words and teachings. St. Thomas was not an easy man to convince, as the Scriptures has shown us. Yet, in the end, the Lord showed St. Thomas that everything that He has revealed and taught to him were truly the truth, and everything indeed happened as He had predicted and spoken about them. Thus, St. Thomas became one of the most ardent disciples of the Lord, and went on to do great things for the greater glory of God, spreading the Good News of God to more and more people who have not yet heard of Him.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Ephesians, of the nature that all the faithful people of God are parts of the Church, the Body of Christ. The Apostles meanwhile are the foundations and the pillars, as were the prophets and other great saints and messengers of God. Each one of them are important parts of the Church, which allowed the Church to grow ever larger and prosper among the people of God. St. Thomas the Apostle was one of these many pillars, and the contributions and works he had done, all were meant to strengthen the structure and the support of the Church. St. Paul also mentioned how all the whole structure is joined together, and rises to be a holy Temple in the Lord, representing how each and every one of us as those who believe in the Lord are Temples of the Lord’s Holy Presence.

The significance of those words, is that the Apostles and the many other saints are the good role models and inspirations for all the other faithful people of God, and through the holiness and sanctity that they had shown, in their lives and works, St. Thomas the Apostle, the other Apostles and the innumerable other holy men and women of God, those who have been declared saints and blesseds, all these helped us all in our own lives, by inspiring and showing us all what it truly means for us to be Christians, to be God’s people and members of His one Body, the Body of Christ the Church. Each and every one of us should be strengthened and empowered by the Apostles and all that they had done for the good of the Church and all the whole people of God.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the account of how the Lord appeared to St. Thomas the Apostle and the other disciples and proved to the former that He was truly risen from the dead. Initially, the Lord appeared to all the Apostles and disciples of the Lord except for St. Thomas himself who was away and not present. St. Thomas doubled down on his stubborn refusal to believe in the Lord’s resurrection, and even challenged that he would not believe unless he could put his fingers into the wounds of the Lord, and prove that He was truly risen in the flesh, or else he would not believe in Him. That was when the Lord proved him wrong and revealed to St. Thomas himself that He was indeed Risen from the dead.

Through all of these, we can see that God had called for Himself people who were imperfect, flawed and some might even consider unworthy to be the disciples and followers of the Lord, and less still as an Apostle and a role model for all the faithful. But lest we are quick to judge and think that St. Thomas was less than worthy to follow the Lord, we have to look at ourselves first. Are we not also flawed and faulty, imperfect and sometimes wicked in our ways? When God called us, it was not His intention to make those who are already great and perfect, unblemished and unflawed to be His followers. In fact, none of us would have ever been worthy of the Lord in that manner, and no one would have been worthy enough to be a follower of the Lord, being sinners that we are.

However, the truth is that God called His disciples and followers from the world, sinners and imperfect, and turned them all into those whose lives have been transformed and changed by their knowledge of God and His truth. For example, St. Thomas himself, once filled with doubt and stubbornness in refusing to believe in the Lord, became one of the Lord’s greatest servants in doing His will through many years of faithful service, proclaiming the Good News in many distant places and lands, and converting many to the true faith, revealing the Risen Lord to those who have not yet heard of Him. Once an unbeliever himself, St. Thomas spent many years in his works, in proclaiming the Risen Lord, and eventually even suffering and dying a martyr’s death for that same truth.

St. Thomas went to proclaim the Good News of God in many places, and most importantly, in what is now India, where he proclaimed the Messiah and the Son of God, the Risen Lord, in various parts of southern India. Apostolic and Church traditions, as well as historical evidences showed that St. Thomas helped to establish Christian communities in various places across coastal areas of India, evidently due to his works and contributions. Those Christian communities would endure and remain strong for centuries, and later on, those Christians kept their faith and continued to show the faith in the Lord despite the hardships and the challenges that they constantly faced. St. Thomas himself faced the same persecution and hardships, and was martyred in the midst of his ministry.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we can clearly see that the Lord had called St. Thomas to be His faithful and worthy servant, although he was an unbeliever and was wavering in faith initially. He called the imperfect and the weak so that by His grace and strength, He might empower them all and strengthen them that they become the worthy followers and disciples of His. That is what He has done for us as well, and what He will do for us. Each one of us should realise that as Christians, as God’s followers and disciples, we should do our best to do God’s will, in all that He has entrusted to each one of us, the mission and works that we should be doing in the path that He has shown us. The question is then, are we able to commit ourselves like St. Thomas and the other holy men and women of God had done?

Let us all therefore seek to do our best to do God’s will in each and every moments and opportunities provided to us, so that we may continue to glorify Him by our lives, by our every actions, works and deeds, as well as in our every words and interactions with one another. May the Lord continue to bless us and guide us in our every efforts and good endeavours, so that we may continue to inspire each other and more people, just as how St. Thomas had inspired countless people throughout the history of the Church and the world. St. Thomas, Holy Apostle of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, pray for us all who are sinners and are weak in our faith, that God may also strengthen our faith in Him and our love and dedication to Him, as He has done with you. Amen.

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Monday, 3 July 2023 : Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

John 20 : 24-29

At that time, Thomas, the Twin, one of the Twelve, was not with the other Eleven when Jesus came. The other disciples told Him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he replied, “Until I have seen in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in His side, I will not believe.”

Eight days later, the disciples were again inside the house and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you!” Then He said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see My hands; stretch out your hand, and put it into My side. Do not continue in your unbelief, but believe!”

Thomas said, “You are my Lord and my God.” Jesus replied, “You believe because you see Me, do you not? Happy are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”