Saturday, March 20, 2010

St. Dismas (? to c.33)


"Today you will be with me in Paradise."
Jesus said those words to St. Dismas (or St. Dysmas) who was at his right hand, being Crucified at the same time on Calvary, and because of it, the man known as the Good Thief became a saint.
St. Dismas (who was given this name in the 4th century) is mentioned in the Gospel of Luke. He asked Jesus to remember him in his Kingdom. The thief to the left was called Gestas.
Many other saints have written about St. Dismas. St. John Chrysostom said "he dwelt in the desert and robbed or murdered anyone unfortunate enough to cross his path."
It didn't matter what he did in life. He was a repentant thief and Jesus forgave him.
Hopefully, today's criminals will learn from such an amazing story.
St. Dismas is the patron saint of prisoners and repentant thieves. He died c.33 and his feast day is March 25 (the Annunciation).

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