Sep 22 – S Thomas of Villanova

It’s the Feast of St. Thomas of Villanova, 3rd Class, with the color of White. In this episode: the meditation: “Charity and Friendship”, today’s news from the Church: “Leo XIV increases salaries in the Curia”, a preview of this week’s episode of The Archbishop Lefebvre Audiobook: Ch. 18: “Strongholds of Reconquest”, and today’s thought from the Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre.

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Saint Thomas of Villanova became an archbishop, but he apparently never got very good at looking like one.

He was born in Spain in 1486 and grew up in Villanueva de los Infantes. His family was comfortable but remarkably generous. His father regularly gave food to the poor, and Thomas absorbed that habit early. One story says that when his parents were away, young Thomas gave away several of the family’s chickens to people who needed food.

That instinct never really left him.

Thomas was brilliant. He studied at the University of Alcalá and became a professor of philosophy before entering the Augustinian Order in his thirties. He quickly became known as an exceptional preacher and eventually served in leadership positions within the order.

Then, in 1544, he was appointed Archbishop of Valencia.

Thomas did not want the job.

When obedience finally forced him to accept, the cathedral chapter gave him money to furnish his new residence appropriately.

Thomas gave the money to a hospital.

Apparently, the old furniture was good enough.

That pretty much describes his entire episcopacy.

Thomas wore patched clothing, kept a simple household, and distributed enormous amounts of the archdiocese’s income to the poor. People sometimes criticized him for giving money too freely, but Thomas was actually quite thoughtful about charity. He didn’t want merely to hand someone a coin and send him away. He tried to provide work, tools, education, and opportunities that could help families escape poverty permanently.

He also had a particular concern for abandoned babies.

Valencia had many infants left without families, so Thomas established programs to provide them with nurses, clothing, food, and eventually apprenticeships or dowries as they grew older.

His generosity became so famous that people called him the “Father of the Poor.”

But Thomas wasn’t simply a charitable administrator.

He was also trying to reform an archdiocese badly in need of attention. He visited parishes, improved the formation of priests, established a seminary, and preached constantly. His sermons became famous throughout Spain for being direct, practical, and understandable.

There’s a wonderfully characteristic story from near the end of his life.

Thomas knew he was dying and began giving away almost everything remaining in his possession. He even gave away the bed he was lying on, although he borrowed it back long enough to die in it.

That’s Thomas of Villanova in one image.

Even his deathbed wasn’t really his anymore.

He died in 1555 while Mass was being celebrated nearby. His funeral drew enormous crowds, especially the poor of Valencia, who knew they had lost someone who had treated them not as a problem to manage, but as members of his own family.

Saint Thomas of Villanova, father of the poor and humble shepherd of Valencia, pray for us.

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