Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) was an Italian Dominican friar, priest, and theologian, born near Aquino and educated at Monte Cassino and the University of Naples before joining the Dominicans over his family's objections. He studied under Saint Albert the Great and taught in Paris and Italy, writing the Summa Theologiae, one of the most influential works of theology ever composed. He died on his way to the Council of Lyon and was declared a Doctor of the Church, honored as the Angelic Doctor.
Thomas shows that faith and reason are friends, not rivals — that loving God with our whole mind is itself a form of prayer. Near the end of his life, after a profound experience in prayer, he called all he had written 'like straw' compared to the glory he had glimpsed, reminding us that every human word falls silent before the love of God. His humility and hunger for truth invite us to keep seeking God with both heart and intellect.
Saint Thomas Aquinas, Angelic Doctor, pray that we may seek the truth with humble hearts and love God with all our mind, until we see Him face to face. Amen.Enter today’s Mass → All saints →