Liberal Catholic Church of St. Thomas

St. Thomas the Apostle – Feast Day: 3rd July

Poor Thomas! He made one remark and has been branded as “Doubting Thomas” ever since. But if he doubted, he also believed. He made what is certainly the most explicit statement of faith in the New Testament: “My Lord and My God!” (see John 20:24-28) and, in so expressing his faith, gave Christians a prayer that will be said till the end of time. He also occasioned a compliment from Jesus to all later Christians: “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed” (John 20:29).

Thomas should be equally well known for his courage. Perhaps what he said was impetuous—since he ran, like the rest, at the showdown—but he can scarcely have been insincere when he expressed his willingness to die with Jesus. The occasion was when Jesus proposed to go to Bethany after Lazarus had died. Since Bethany was near Jerusalem, this meant walking into the very midst of his enemies and to almost certain death. Realizing this, Thomas said to the other apostles, “Let us also go to die with him” (John 11:16b).

Comment:

Thomas shares the lot of Peter the impetuous, James and John, the “sons of thunder,” Philip and his foolish request to see the Father—indeed all the apostles in their weakness and lack of understanding. We must not exaggerate these facts, however, for Christ did not pick worthless men. But their human weakness again points up the fact that holiness is a gift of God, not a human creation; it is given to ordinary men and women with weaknesses; it is God who gradually transforms the weaknesses into the image of Christ, the courageous, trusting and loving one.

Patron Saint of: Architects, Construction workers, Cooks

Thomas was selected to be Patron of our Canberra Parish because of his alleged doubts that reflected what was thought to be the attitude of the Public Service based here in our city. He also had the reputation of being a Builder from his subsequent work in India building churches there in the early Christian period. At the time of the establishment of our parish Canberra was certainly in the midst of a building boom though it took many years before our current building was erected.

The photo above is of the ordination of Rev Dr Greg Connolly as a priest by Bishop Graham Preston at St Thomas’s church on 7th of July 2008.

We have our regular masses (Holy Eucharists) on Sunday mornings, starting at 10am. They are currently subject to attendance and physical-distancing limits, due to Government regulations relating to the Coronavirus Global Pandemic. They are usually sung masses, where we sing or intone most of the mass. While this may seem unfamiliar the first time you attend if you are familiar with said masses, it doesn’t take long to get used to it. The main body of our church is octagonal, with a high-pitched roof (designed to be akin to a Mongolian yurt) and has beautiful acoustics.

We also use incense in our masses. If you are sensitive to incense, please let us know before we start our masses and we will reduce the amount of incense we use and open some more windows. We have morning tea and a chat after our masses.

We usually also have a regular spiritual healing service on the third Tuesday of each month, starting at 7.30pm. However, these are in abeyance until further notice, due to Government restrictions on religious services, due to the Coronavirus Global Pandemic. 

On special occasions, we also have other church services, in Lent and Advent and on Holy Days. We also provide the other Sacraments and services (including baptisms, weddings, funerals, last rites, house blessings) as required and within the rules set by Government. 

For further information on our services, please contact Fr Greg Connolly on (02) 6258 3898 or via email at fr.greg.connolly@liberalcatholicchurch.org.au.