Saint of the Issue
By: Huey Campbell
When Jesus was crucified on Calvary two millennia ago, he was done so alongside two thieves. The first one was impenitent and joined the crowd in mocking Jesus. The second thief rebuked the impenitent one, claiming Jesus’ innocence and asking for mercy from Jesus. Did you know that this good thief was a saint?
St. Dismas is most commonly known as the Good Thief or the Penitent Thief. However, not much is know about St. Dismas outside of the crucifixion except in a fictional myth from the Arabic Gospel of the Infancy. The Holy Family was escaping to Egypt when two thieves, Dismas and Gestas (the Impenitent Thief) came upon the family. Gestas wanted to attack the family, but Dismas paid him forty drachma to leave the family unharmed. Then, the Infant Jesus predicted that the two men will be crucified with Him in Jerusalem, and Dismas would join Jesus in heaven. The feast day of St. Dismas is March 25.
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