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Thomas the Apostle
Thomas the Apostle (Greek: Θωμᾶς, romanized: Thōmâs; Aramaic ܬܐܘܡܐ, romanized: Tʾōmā, meaning "the twin"),[a] also known as Didymus (Greek: Δίδυμος, romanized: Dídymos, meaning "twin"), was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus according to the New Testament. Thomas is commonly known as "Doubting Thomas" because he initially doubted the resurrection of Jesus Christ when he was told of it (as is related in the Gospel of John); he later confessed his faith ("My lord and my God") on seeing the places where the wounds appeared still fresh on the holy body of Jesus after the Crucifixion of Jesus. While it is often assumed he touched the wounds in art and poetry, the scriptures do not say that he touched the wounds, merely that Jesus invited him to do so, with it being unclear if he actually felt them.
According to traditional accounts of the Saint Thomas Christians of modern-day state of Kerala in India, Saint Thomas travelled outside the Roman Empire to preach the Gospel, travelling as far as Kerala in South India,[1][4][5][6] and reached Muziris (modern-day North Paravur and Kodungalloor in Kerala State) in AD 52. He started the Assyrian Church of the East in Ankawa, Assyria in Upper Mesopotamia, probably sometime between late AD 30's and AD 45, and spent many years evangelizing both Jews and pagans in the area before heading further east in the late AD 40's.[7][8] [1][9][10] In 1258, some of the relics were brought to Ortona, in Abruzzo, Italy, where they have been held in the Church of Saint Thomas the Apostle.[11] He is regarded as the patron saint of India among its Christian adherents,[12][13] and the Feast of Saint Thomas on July 3 is celebrated as Indian Christians' Day.[14][15] The name Thomas remains quite popular among the Saint Thomas Christians of the Indian subcontinent.
Many churches in the Middle East and southern Asia, besides India, also mention Apostle Thomas in their historical traditions as being the first evangelist to establish those churches, the Assyrian Church of the East,[7] as well as the early church of Sri Lanka.[16]
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- ^ a b c Fahlbusch et al. 2008, p. 285.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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st-takla.orgwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Slapak 1995, p. 27.
- ^ Medlycott 1905.
- ^ Puthiakunnel 1973.
- ^ a b "Socotra: The Mysterious Island of the Assyrian Church of the East". Church of Beth Kokheh Journal. 11 April 2016. Archived from the original on 4 August 2021. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
- ^ "Did the apostle Peter ever visit Babylon?".[permanent dead link]
- ^ Johnson & Zacharia 2016.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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catholic-saints.infowas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Medlycott, Ch. IV.
- ^ Carvalho, Nirmala (29 June 2021). "First Indian Christian Day on 3 July". AsiaNews. Archived from the original on 4 July 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
- ^ Kumar, Anugrah (4 July 2021). "India: Christians celebrate first Indian Christian Day, feast of St. Thomas". The Christian Post. Archived from the original on 4 July 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
- ^ Pinto, Leonard (23 September 2013). "Sri Lanka: a brief history of Christianity". Scoop News. Archived from the original on 4 October 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
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