ng one thing after another to change hismind. They even send a woman of bad reputation into his room, but Thomas chased herout with a piece of burning wood from the fire. After this event, he prayed to God, askingfor purity of mind and body. Two angels appeared to him in a dream, to assure him thathis prayers had been answered and that God was giving him the gift of perfect chastity.From this, he earned the title 'Angelic Doctor.' He spent his imprisonment reading and in prayer, so when his familyfinally relented and Thomas joined his Dominican brothers, his superior exclaimed that'He had made as much progress as if he had been in a studium generale'. After he madehis vows, and was closely questioned by the Pope about his motives for joining theDominicans, he was sent to study under a renowned professor of the Dominican order. Inthe school, Thomas' size, humility and reluctance to speak were misinterpreted asdullness. He was given the nickname 'The Ox.' But when his teachers and fellow studentsheard him speak on a difficult topic, they realized what a mistake they had made. Soon, Saint Thomas was teaching where before he had studied. He was ingreat demand as a teacher and speaker, frequently called to confer with the king ofFrance and the Pope. The rest of his life was spent praying, preaching, teaching, writing,and journeying. Saint Thomas wrote many theological and philosophical books, as wellas composing several beautiful hymns. His most famous work, the Summa Theologica,was never finished. During a Mass on the Feast of Saint Nicholas, the saint had amystical experience, one that convinced him that 'All that I have written seems to me likestraw compared to what has now been revealed to me.' Thomas began to prepare for death. But when he was summoned to theCouncil of Lyons by Pope Gregory X, he set out. He collapsed on the way and was takento the Cistercian monastery of Fossa Nuova, where he lay in his final illness for a month. When ...
