On January 25, 2024, Aquinas College celebrated the feast of her patron saint, the great theologian, Doctor of the Church, philosopher, and mystic, St. Thomas Aquinas. Mass and a luncheon were held in the Aquinas Center, followed by an evening lecture in his honor at the nearby Motherhouse. The focus of the event was St. Thomas’s heroic virtue, his faith and holiness serving as a model for our lives today, a subject which sometimes has been overshadowed by history’s respect for the brilliance of his mind and the breadth of his scholarship.

Celebrating the Mass was The Most Reverend J. Mark Spalding, Bishop of Nashville, who also conferred the mandatum upon three Theology faculty: Sister Mary Diana Dreger, O.P, Sister Dominica Bickerton, O.P., and the Reverend Luke Wilgenbush of the Nashville Diocese. Also concelebrating were priests with special ties to the campus and the Saint Cecilia Community including the Reverend John Sims Baker and the Reverend Mark Chrismer. The homily and keynote lecture were delivered by the Reverend John A. Langlois, O.P., and the college’s own seminarian schola comprised the choir. The Master of Ceremonies, the Reverend Rhodes Bolster; Mitchell Price, the organist; and the generous hands of many volunteers with the flower arrangements and garnishing of the Center established a pervading atmosphere of joyful reverence that helped to make the celebration memorable. A relaxed luncheon buffet followed the Mass, enjoyed by the entire campus and guests, making the stormy weather no obstacle for the joy that broke upon our company.