One of the favorite patron saints of anyone who loves learning! If you have children, younger or older, starting a new school year soon, bless them with a Saint Thomas Aquinas statue of the brilliant saint who is praying for them to develop their intellectual abilities to the best of their abilities, but also to do so for the glory of God!
Thomas Aquinas, born into a wealthy family, was shuttled off to live in a Benedictine monastery at the young age of five, so high were his parents' hopes that he would bring the family pride as a Benedictine monk. Thomas had other ideas, however, and decided to join the Dominican order. So angry were his parents that his two brothers kidnapped him and held him in house arrest for a year to deter him from entering the Dominicans. Eventually, his mother allowed him to escape, and he continued on his desired pathway, which included professorships and extensive writing. So profound was his writing on the Faith that our Lord Himself appeared to Thomas from the Cross and said to him, "You have written well of me, Thomas. What reward would you have for your labor?" Thomas answered, "Nothing but you, Lord." After this encounter with Christ Crucified, Thomas ceased writing and never finished his work. His body of writings earned him the exemplary title "Doctor of the Church" and are the foundational writings explaining the marriage of faith and reason.
St. Thomas Aquinas is the patron saint of philosophers, theologians, apologists, scholars, students, schools, colleges and universities, learning and academics, and chastity. His feast day is January 28.
