Talk:Thomas the Apostle

message: Hi, 
This article mentions St Thomas as the Patron Saint of India. Since India is a secular country and doesnt recognize any religions identities. Claiming someone as Patron Saint of India is an inaccurate depiction. The items at below Government site are the accepted symbols of India and whatever else may be someones personal belief and cannot be associated with the country.
https://www.india.gov.in/india-glance/national-symbols
There are two sources identified to support the claim that St Thomas as Patron Saint of India
1. Site: http://www.catholic-saints.info/patron-saints/patron-saints-countries.htm: This is a random site without any scholarly or any sort of authority. If such sites are to be taken as source, then Wikipedia will be filled with any kind of fantasy.
2. Second source is Chapter IV of Medlycott, Adolphus E. (1905). India and the Apostle Thomas: An Inquiry, with a Critical Analysis of the Acta Thomae. London: David Nutt. There is no mention of 'Patron' in this Chapter. Please check for yourself at https://archive.org/stream/indiaandapostle00unkngoog/indiaandapostle00unkngoog_djvu.txt
So, it is illegal to call someone a Patron Saint of India, a secular country, with dubious references. Request this reference be removed.
Thanks
Arunck (talk) 13:58, 8 May 2021 (UTC)
replies: text: To say that Thomas is the patron saint of India means that people for whom patron saints are a thing ascribe that function to him. We certainly need sources that this ascription is made, but nobody suggests or imagines that this is a government-approved position. To say it is "illegal" is interesting. What law prohibits people for whom patron saints are a thing from invoking him, in particular, when praying for the blessing and protection of India? --Andreas Philopater (talk) 23:26, 8 May 2021 (UTC)
replies: text: @Arunck Is it a legal thing to call someone a patron saint? --99v (talk) 03:44, 9 May 2021 (UTC)

text: Are you serious? That's friviolous. The whole "patron saint" is a Catholic/Eastern Orthodox concept. Thereofore, anything that comes after "patron saint of" doesn't lie in legal domains. Anything and everything can have a patron saint, as per the Catholic Church. The Catholic Bishops conference of India recognize Thomas as the country's patron saint. The Indian Union Government has no jurisdiction over this.  Ronherry (talk) 16:41, 26 September 2021 (UTC)
thread_title:  Thomas as Patron Saint of India 

message: July 3 2402:8100:2668:EFD8:86B9:3CE2:F1FD:1051 (talk) 02:27, 30 June 2022 (UTC)
thread_title:  Patron saint of Saint Thomas school 

message: This article confuses church traditions with actual evidence established by historians and archaeologists. It uses theologians and their writings as if they were reliable sources, and there is no clear distinction between primary and secondary sources. The article does not demonstrate historicity, nor does it describe the identity of Thomas within the narrative properly. It does not elaborate on the story that he could be the twin brother of Jesus, as in Christmas being about Mary's supposed divine pregnancy producing two children, which would redefine all of Christianity. It does not describe the origins and progression of the entire India connection. The article is overall very superficial and convoluted. It does not contain references to extrabiblical, contemporary primary sources and no secondary sources properly dealing with those. ♆ CUSH ♆ 08:36, 4 November 2022 (UTC)
replies: text: Agreed. There is way too much of otherwise unsupported direct citation from primary religious texts, primary texts and online religious sources, such as church websites. Iskandar323 (talk) 08:50, 4 November 2022 (UTC)

text: I also agree. Historicity and religious belief are muddled together in this article. There is not a single objective historical source that states that St Thomas actually landed in Kerala that I could find referenced here. Chronikhiles (talk) 12:53, 24 February 2023 (UTC)
replies: text: The same could be said of any Christian article; where is the state birth certificate for Thomas or Jesus? Trying to put a wedge between Scripture and Tradition is fatuous and points to a lack of understanding of the period. Laurel Lodged (talk) 15:33, 24 February 2023 (UTC)
thread_title:  This article is highly irritating 

message: "(…) Aramaic תְּאוֹמָא Tʾōmā (Syriac ܬܐܘܿܡܵܐ/ܬ݁ܳܐܘܡܰܐ Tʾōmā/Tāʾwma) (…) Hebrew תְּאוֹם tʾóm." -- what is the significance of "ʾ" here? The t's aren't emphatic in these words. 195.187.108.130 (talk) 15:08, 30 May 2023 (UTC)
thread_title:  Names and etymologies