Saint Thomas the Hermit
"The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation."
The Story In A Minute
Background
Saint Thomas was born around the 4th century, in a village called Shenshif -north Ekhmim in Upper Egypt - to two pious parents, who raised him in the fear of God. He led a quiet, peaceable life renouncing the vanities of the world and its lusts. He longed for monasticism and dedicated his life to constant prayer and contemplation.
He left his home and headed towards the wilderness, where he lived in a cave in the mount of Shenshif. There, he led an ascetic life following the example of Saint Antony’s solitary monasticism.
Spiritual Life in the Cave
In his cave in the mountain, he practiced his spiritual exercises, and he loved
praying and praising with his euphonious voice. He was strict in his asceticism to the point that he only ate once a week. He memorized many parts of the Holy Bible, fulfilling its commandments and living out the Bible with joy.
Although he shunned attention and loved solitude, he never stopped any of the fathers from meeting with him to benefit from his spiritual insight.
Life of Praises
Saint Thomas lived a life of praising God. Once, while he was praising using the Psalms, he noticed three men in white garments behind him, singing with an angelic voice. Saint Thomas rejoiced and went on praising with them all night. He later found out that they were monks from the monastery of Saint Shenouda, the Archimandrite. Saint Shenouda was the head of his monastery. He was a great leader and is upheld as one of the greatest pillars of monasticism in the Coptic church to this day. He would visit Saint Thomas often, traversing the region from his monastery in the Western mount, to the cell of Saint Thomas in the Eastern mount, in order to enjoy his company.
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His Prophecy
The meetings of Saint Thomas and Saint Shenouda were stamped with a spiritual fragrance that exhibited their love for our Lord Jesus Christ. They lived a heavenly life on earth as they spent their time offering praises to God. In the final visit, Saint Thomas said to Saint Shenouda, “This is the last visit. I shall soon leave you and the Lord informed me that you shall follow me a few days later.” Saint Shenouda asked him for a sign.
Saint Thomas said to him, “At the time that my soul departs from my body, the large rock that you sit on outside your cell will split in half like a book that you open.”
Virtues of St. Thomas
After visiting Saint Thomas, a disciple of Saint Shenouda proclaimed, " I have just come back from the heavenly Jerusalem carrying many blessings!"
Purity of the heart is a characteristic feature attributed to the desert fathers. It is purity which identified Adam in the Garden of Eden before his fall. It is also the merit which marked the Apostles, who, when our Lord Jesus Christ called them, left all and followed Him. Purity was the virtue which eased Saint Thomas’ life with God. He was likened to the angels.
His Departure
Back in his cell, Saint Shenouda kept pondering what Saint Thomas had announced to him. A few days later, Saint Shenouda was praying in front of his cell when he noticed that the rock on which he used to sit had split in two.
As he looked up towards heaven, he saw the Archangel Raphael approaching him saying:
Peace be with you, the bosom friend of God and the beloved of Saint Thomas. The Lord has sent me to carry you to the body of Saint Thomas, that we may wrap it and place it in the earth.