HOLY DAYS - 3 JULY - ST THOMAS

According to several early writers, the Apostle Thomas travelled to India. Many Christians in the majority Christian state of Kerala believe their ancestors were baptised by Thomas in AD 52. Hundreds of Kerala churches are dedicated to St Thomas and Thomas is a hugely popular boy’s name.

Indian Christianity was so well established by AD 325 that the First Council of Nicaea had at least one delegate from the Indian Church. “John the Persian, Bishop of all Persia and great India” is recorded as having been present at the First Council of Nicea.

Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the man who became Pope Francis in 2013, proved unconventional. He refused to live in the Apostolic Palace, residing in the Domus Sanctae Marthae guesthouse instead. He took the name Francis, in honour of Saint Francis of Assisi, becoming the first uniquely named pope in over 1,000 years. Many of his major teachings, known as “papal encyclicals”, echoed the wisdom of Saint Francis. For instance, Laudato Si (Praise Be to You, 2015) and Fratelli Tutti (All Brothers and Sisters, 2020), concerning care for the planet and care for each other, drew their inspiration from the saint.

This year marks the tenth anniversary of the ecumenical, global prayer movement for evangelisation, Thy Kingdom Come.Initiated by the then Archbishops of Canterbury and York in 2016, what started off as a call to prayer for evangelisation for the Church of England, has since united tens of millions of Christians, across 85 different denominations and traditions, in many nations across the world, to pray in the days between Ascension and Pentecost.

pollybrown@mottramparish.org.uk

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