NOVALICHES BISHOP Emeritus Rev. Teodoro Bacani, O.P, D.D. has encouraged Thomasians to use their heart in seeking God and other people to become more like their patron St. Thomas Aquinas.
“It is only with the heart that one sees what is essential. In order to see the real person’s – and especially to see God who is love – we need to have loving eyes,” Bacani said during the University’s fiesta mass in honor of St. Thomas Aquinas last Jan. 27.
Bacani said it was through looking at God lovingly that the saint “received light in love” that he passed on to other people.
“[St. Thomas’] faith sought answers because, in love, he sought endlessly for those answers and lovingly presented them to fellow human beings,” he said.
“If we live by faith and not by sight, we also notice that by faith, we see what is invisible, for faith is the evidence of things not visible to the human eye,” he said.
However, he clarified that faith without love is not enough to see God.
“You need that power of faith to be energized by love. Unless it is energized and empowered by love, faith can be blind faith. Faith can remain unseen,” the retired bishop added.
According to Bacani, Aquinas acknowledged everything as a gift of the Lord and contemplated God in all his beauty. He invited members of the Thomasian community to emulate Aquinas, who “studied, prayed, and looked at God lovingly in his works.”
Known as the “Angelic Doctor” because of his exemplary teaching and virtues, Aquinas is widely regarded as the greatest theologian of the Middle Ages and the patron saint of universities and scholars.
The Italian Dominican friar is best known for his work Summa Theologica, which tackled key theological issues, including the nature and existence of God.
The University launched a triennium in his honor on Jan. 27, the day before his feast day, to commemorate the anniversaries of his birth, death, and canonization. .F – A. Lim and S. L. Macaraeg
