Feast of St Thomas Aquinas: His Search for Holiness and Understanding

His Search for Holiness and Understanding

St. Thomas Aquinas is particularly known for two things. His zeal and love for holiness. Also, he zealously pursued the study of Christian doctrine. On this feast day, this homily focuses on these two zealous pursuits.

Holiness is something we all should desire. Most humans settle for “good enough”. Many may not want to be holy, they just want to get by. “Good enough” is good enough for many. We celebrate saints, because good enough was not the way they lived their lives. The Lord deserves better than good enough.

So what does “good enough” mean? It means when doing something, we can stop now and do something else. Because, what we did was “good enough”. For some things in life, this makes perfect sense. However, in the spiritual life, the “good enough” attitude normally does not lead to holiness. We all must be better than just “good enough”.

The desire for holiness in one’s heart is the restlessness that St. Thomas Aquinas felt. His desire was joined with understanding the faith that was so important in animating his life. He strived after holiness, while also seeking to understand his faith.

For St. Thomas Aquinas, the Lord was not someone to obey, but also to be known. He could not know the Lord without his two pursuits of Holiness and Understanding his Faith.

One of the marvels of learning about the saints and their lives, is it provides us with a glimpse, or insight, into their spiritual life and their spiritual journey. Listen to this homily, as it unpacks the lessons St. Thomas Aquinas leaves us for our own Spiritual Journey. Listen and Meditate for the Week upon St. Thomas Aquinas.

For St. Thomas Aquinas, the Lord was not someone to obey, but also to be known. He could not know the Lord without his two pursuits of Holiness and Understanding his Faith.