The Dumb Ox by Cameron

Hi! In this blog post, I want to tell you about another one of my favorite saints, whose feast day is coming up on January 28. He is a Doctor of the Church whose name is St. Thomas Aquinas, and he is a very interesting saint.

St. Thomas Aquinas was born in 1225 to a family of royalty. He was an average-sized youth, who was very intelligent and funny. He had two sisters, his father and mother, and two older brothers. His cousin was the very powerful Emperor Fredrick Barbarossa.

At age six, Thomas was sent to live with the Benedictine monks of Monte Casino, where he learned to read and write. After about five years, his parents transferred him to a university in Naples, Italy, where he studied. Eventually, he joined the Dominican friars in Naples. But his mother had wanted him to come back and become the Abbot of Monte Casino, so she sent his older brothers and some knights to go and bring him back, which they did. 

His Mother thought that him becoming a Dominican friar was a disgrace, so he was locked in a tower for eighteen months. During that time, he read some books that his sisters brought him, and wrote various things, but his favorite book was the bible, which some parts he memorized. Eventually, he escaped with the help of his siblings, and went back to the Dominican friary.

There, he lived a peaceful life where he studied for a Doctor of Theology Degree, which he got. But, at a point before that, his fellow students called him a "dumb ox," for he did not talk much in class. But one day, when his teacher found one of his essays, he was amazed and said, "One day this ox's bellowing will be heard throughout the world," which was true. Then, he wrote many famous books, such as the "Summa Theologica," " The Summa Contra Gentiles,"and " Treatise on Happiness," and most of the hymns that we use for Adoration.

Some books I recommend about St. Thomas are "St. Thomas Aquinas and the Preaching Beggars" (one of the amazing Vision Book series), and "St. Thomas Aquinas: The Story of the Dumb Ox." St. Thomas Aquinas inspires me to look deeper into my faith, discern my vocation, and to also read some of his many books when I am older, and if you already have, then tell me about them!

God Bless,

Cameron