The Smartest Man Who Ever Lived

One

We often hear people described as ‘the smartest guy/gal whoever lived!’ In St. Thomas’ case, this might be true! This 13th C saint was so amazing with his theological output that Popes and theologians have identified his writings as the primary source for understanding the truths of Divine Revelation. This isn’t the most amazing thing about him, though. The most amazing thing about him is his heroic virtues, especially humility. One year before he died, he was granted a heavenly vision. Upon recovering his senses from this divine contemplation, he told a fellow friar he would never finish his theological masterpiece called the Summa Theologiae, because compared to what he had seen, it was as straw! Straw? The greatest theological treatise ever written?! Whatever he saw, the grandeurs of it superseded and overwhelmed his enormous intellect. Rather than cling to his status and grand reputation earned for his work, the humble Thomas gladly embraced the towering reality of God and happily accepted a truer understanding of his work.

Two

Aquinas often received heavenly visits from saints like Peter and Paul, from Our Lady, and from Our Lord as well. On one occasion, Jesus appeared to him and said, “Thomas, thou hast written well of me! Ask of me what thou will and I shall grant it to you.” To this Thomas responded, “Thou, oh Lord, I only want thou!” St. Thomas reveals the key trait for understanding and communicating God to others: Love! To truly love God, in all earnestness and humility, opens up such treasures of divine graces that the mind can now perceive both truth and error with greater clarity, and the disciple can convert even ardent detractors. St. Thomas so brilliantly united truths of faith with truths of philosophy, as well as synthesized so much of the theological writings that had come before him that seemingly inaccessible truths of God were now accessible. The confidence this gave to the human intellect resulted not only in the flourishing of theology, but also further evolved the university system and inspired countless theologians, religious, and clergy to become saints. For this reason, I named my oldest son after him (he can be the saint….!)

Three

 I returned to the Church in 1989 after I heard a woman offer her testimony about how her life changed when she visited Medjugorje, a town in what was then Yugoslavia where the Blessed Virgin was supposedly appearing to six children. God used Char’s witness to flood me with grace to convert me that evening, but I still had a ton of questions bothering my soul due to such poor catechesis. It was a year almost to the date when God opened the floodgates of knowledge for me, and I began the journey that has led me to cofound the School of Faith and the Movement of the Holy Family. I benefited so much from understanding my faith that an insatiable desire for divine truth welled up within me along with a tremendous desire to share it with others. Receiving and sharing; sharing and receiving, all for the love of God. Can you think of a better or more simple way to live your life?

Four

St Thomas feared thunderstorms, was even almost phobic. Even saints have fears and anxieties. Aquinas sought solace in the Church at the tabernacle, sometimes being found clinging to it with a bear-hug. If you have fears and anxieties, you are in good company!  Rather than feel this to be a hinderance to your call to sanctity, follow the example of Thomas: go to the nearest tabernacle, receive the solace of Jesus, and leave your fears there where He, Jesus, can take care of them.

Five

In 1263, a priest struggling with belief in the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist celebrated Mass in a neighboring town near the summer residence of the Pope Urban IV in Orvieto, Italy. At the moment of consecration, when the bread and wine completely change into the Body and Blood of Our Lord, the Host began to drip blood on the white cloth the priest uses at the altar known as the corporal. The Pope had St. Thomas Aquinas investigate the miracle and upon receiving a positive review from the saint, established the Feast of Corpus Christi. Legend has it that the Pope further challenged both St. Thomas and his classmate St. Bonaventure to write hymns marking the celebration of both the Feast Day and the miracle. This inspired St. Thomas to write the beautiful prayer recited every Holy Thursday and at Benediction and Adoration, Pange Lingua,  (Sing my Tongue) sometimes referred to by some of the last line, Tantum Ergo. When Bonaventure heard Aquinas’ beautiful hymn, the story goes, he tore up his own manuscripts!

Let’s close with these few lines of Tantum Ergo written by this great saint:

Down in adoration falling,
Lo, the sacred Host we hail,
Lo, o'er ancient forms departing
Newer rites of grace prevail:
Faith for all defects supplying,
When the feeble senses fail.