Thomas first speaks in the Gospel of John. In John 11:16, when Lazarus had recently died, the apostles do not wish to go back to Judea, where some Jews had attempted to stone Jesus. Thomas says: “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”
Thomas speaks again in John 14:5. There, Jesus had just explained that he was going away to prepare a heavenly home for his followers and that one day they would join him there. Thomas reacted by saying, “Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?”
John 20:24–29 tells how doubting Thomas was skeptical at first when he heard that Jesus had risen from the dead and appeared to the other apostles, saying, “Except I shall see on his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.”But when Jesus appeared later and invited Thomas to touch his wounds and behold him, Thomas showed his belief by saying, “My Lord and my God”.Jesus then said, “Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed they that have not seen, and have believed.”
Saint Alphonsa
Saint Alphonsa, F.C.C., (born Anna Muttathupadathu; 19 August 1910 – 28 July 1946) was an Indian religious sister and educator. She was the first woman of Indian origin to be canonized as a saint by the Catholic Church, and the first canonized saint of the Syro-Malabar Church, an Eastern Catholic Church based in Kerala. Her feast day is observed on 28 July. Thousands of people converge on the small town of Bharananganam when they celebrate the feast of Saint Alphonsa from 19 to 28 July each year; her tomb has been designated as a pilgrimage site with numerous miracles being reported by pious devotees.
Kuriakose Elias Chavara
Kuriakose Elias Chavara, C.M.I. (10 February 1805 – 3 January 1871) was an Indian Catholic priest and social reformer. He is the first canonized Catholic male saint of Indian origin and belongs to the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, an Eastern Catholic Church based in the state of Kerala.[3][4] He was the co-founder and first Prior General of the first congregation for men in the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, now known as the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate (C.M.I.), and of a similar one for women, the Congregation of the Mother of Carmel (C.M.C.).Kuriakose Elias Chavara was a social reformer who initiated reforms in the Kerala society much before Narayana Guru(1853) Chattambi Swamikal(1853) and Vakkom Abdul Khadar Maulavi(1854). Though he hailed from a Syriac Christian family, which occupied a higher social status, he played a major role in educating and uplifting people especially of the lower ranks of society.
Euphrasia Eluvathingal
Saint Euphrasia Eluvathingal, (born Rosa Eluvathingal; 17 October 1877 – 29 August 1952), was an Indian Carmelite nun of the Syro-Malabar Church, which is an Eastern Catholic Church in Kerala. Euphrasia is said to have had a vision of the Holy Family, at which point the illness she had long felt ceased. She was canonized as a saint by Pope Francis on 23 November 2014 in Vatican City. Since the beheading of St. John the Baptist is celebrated on August 29, the feast of St. Euphrasia is postponed to August 30. On 3 April 2014, Pope Francis authorized the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to promulgate the decrees concerning the miracle attributed to Euphrasia’s intercession. This confirmed the Pope’s approval of Euphrasia’s canonization. At a special mass held at St Peter’s Square at Vatican City on 23 November 2014, Pope Francis canonized Euphrasia as a saint. Mother Sancta, Mother General of Congregation of the Mother of Carmel (CMC), carried the relics of Euphrasia to the altar.
Mariam Thresia Chiramel
Mariam Thresia (born Thresia Chiramel Mankidiyan; 26 April 1876 – 8 June 1926) was an Indian Syro-Malabar Catholic professed religious and the founder of the Congregation of the Holy Family. Thresia Mankidiyan became known for receiving frequent visions and ecstasies as well as even receiving the stigmata which she kept well-guarded. She had been involved in apostolic work her entire life and pushed for strict adherence to the rule of her order amongst her fellow religious.
Pope John Paul II beatified the late nun on 9 April 2000. Pope Francis approved a second miracle attributed to her at the beginning of 2019 and she was canonized on 13 October 2019.
The Word for Monday, 13 December 2021
God said to Abraham, As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations.
Genesis 17:9 (ESV)
There is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.