Despite a heat wave, about 500 Catholics from Pakistan’s Punjab province travelled to the ancient city of Taxila to mark the feast of St Thomas the Apostle at a site long associated with the apostle’s mission in the Indian subcontinent. Source: National Catholic Register.
The faithful from St Francis Xavier Parish in Gujranwala arrived in eight buses on July 4 at the archaeological site of Sirkap, where Christian tradition holds that St Thomas preached at the court of King Gondophares before continuing his mission to India.
“The Gospel reached the far corners of the world through the companions of Christ, and that same mission has been entrusted to us,” Fr Yousaf Yaqoob, the parish priest who celebrated the Mass, told the pilgrims.
He encouraged the faithful to visit Christian pilgrimage sites across Pakistan.
“The relics and even the air at pilgrimage sites are a source of blessing. In this digital age, people speak of the Gospel but have largely forgotten the great sacrifices and miracles behind it,” he said. “A nation that forgets its history is forgotten by history.”
After the Mass, pilgrims toured the Taxila Museum and the sacred sites at Sirkap, through which, according to Christian tradition, St Thomas passed in the first century while proclaiming the Gospel in the Indo-Parthian kingdom ruled by King Gondophares.
The Acts of Thomas, an early Syriac Christian text, recounts that the king gave the apostle money to build a royal palace. Instead, Thomas distributed the money among the poor.
Enraged, the king ordered his execution. However, after the king’s brother, Gad, miraculously returned to life and described a heavenly palace built through the apostle’s charity, Gondophares pardoned Thomas and, according to tradition, embraced Christianity along with many of his subjects.
The Punjab Archaeology Department also preserves a local tradition that St Thomas built a stone throne at Sirkap and preached there for four decades. Two brick baptismal basins near the throne are still used for infant and adult baptisms.
According to archaeology officials, more than 25,000 visitors had visited the site by July 4.
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Under a Scorching Sun, 500 Pilgrims Mark St Thomas Feast in Pakistan (Kamran Chaudhry/EWTN News via National Catholic Register)
