FEAST OF ST. THOMAS
Ester, Chapter 9, Verse 2-4
2 The Jews mustered in their cities
throughout the provinces of King Ahasuerus to attack those who sought to do
them harm, and no one could withstand them, for fear of them fell upon all the peoples. 3 Moreover, all the officials of the provinces, the satraps, governors,
and royal procurators supported the Jews out of fear of Mordecai; 4 for Mordecai was powerful in the royal
palace, and the report was spreading through all the provinces that he was
continually growing in power.
The Jews destroyed their
tormentors and the feast of Purim was established but what the heck is a
satrap.
Satrap[1]
Satraps today
·
It is also used in modern times to
refer (usually derogatorily) to the loyal subservient lieutenants or clients of
some powerful figure (with equal imprecision also styled mogul,
tycoon,
or the like), in politics or business.
·
In Portuguese, Italian
and Spanish, the word sátrapa not only carries the
aforementioned ancient historical meaning, but in modern usage also applies to
people who abuse power or authority. It can refer as well to those living in
luxurious and ostentatious conditions or to individuals who act astutely and
even disloyally.
·
The College of 'Pataphysics
used the title Transcendent Satrap for certain of its members, including Marcel
Duchamp, Jean Baudrillard and the Marx brothers.
·
In the Serbian language, satrap is
used to mock a person who displays servile tendencies to an authority figure.
·
THRUSH,
the primary antagonist organization in the TV series The Man From U.N.C.L.E., was divided into
satrapies, based on geographic location.
Sounds like the swamp to me
St. Thomas was one of Jesus'
disciples. He is best known for being the one disciple who wanted proof of
Jesus' resurrection. St. Thomas is celebrated with a feast day in both the
Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches. He is often referred to as Doubting
Thomas, and also the name The Twin. Many Christians see themselves in St.
Thomas because he doubted the resurrection until he received proof from Christ
himself. He also confessed to not understanding Jesus when Christ told his
disciples at the Last Supper that he was preparing a place for them.
St Thomas Facts
·
An early church text claims that
Thomas was the only witness to the Assumption of Mary into heaven. As her
body entered heaven, she dropped her girdle. Medieval art often depicts
Thomas catching the girdle.
·
Thomas didn't believe the apostles
when they saw Jesus the first time after the resurrection. He saw Jesus
himself during his second appearance, and touched the wounds on his hands and
side (John 20:24-29).
·
Church tradition says that Thomas
traveled to eastern lands, including Persia, to evangelize to the people there
about Jesus. He is thought to have settled in India.
·
The feast day is held July 3, but
sermons the following Sunday may also mention St. Thomas and faith. Originally
the feast day for St. Thomas was on Dec. 21, the shortest day of the year.
All sorts of traditions surrounded the day, including serving meat pies
and charitable
giving.
St Thomas Top Events and Things to
Do
·
Read writings by St. Thomas.
Several early church documents bearing Thomas' name are popular,
including the Gospel of Thomas, which is a collection of Jesus' sayings.
Other texts include the Acts of Thomas and the Infancy Gospel of Thomas. None
of these texts were included in the Bible.
·
Thousands of Indians claim to be
descendants of the Christians that Thomas helped to convert. Join them on
a pilgrimage in Paylador to the traditional spot of Thomas' tomb, Our Lady of
Lourdes Cathedral of the Syro-Malabar Archdiocese of Trichur (Kerala, India).
·
If you are a single woman try an
ancient custom performed on the Feast of St. Thomas to get an idea who you will
marry. Unmarried Austrian women would climb into bed over a stool, throw
their shoes with toes pointing downward toward the bedroom door, and then sleep
with their head at the foot of the bed. Women who performed this ritual
were thought to dream about their future husbands.
·
Say a blessing prayer for your
property on the feast of St. Thomas. An ancient custom was for farmers
and their sons or hands to drive off evil spirits in preparation for Christmas.
They were sprinkling holy water across the land, while other family
members stayed inside and prayed the rosary.
Daily Devotions/Prayers
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