The Evangel tells little of the Good Thief at the Calvary, as well as many other characters. However, the Tradition has saved us his name, and, although the critics have doubted, at the point of the Sacred Rite's Congregation, in 1724, order that the Office and Mass of the Great Saint were done under the name of The Good Thief only, but did not contest however, the name that the plurysecular tradition kept us of Saint Dimas. And a wise precaution of the Church that did not damaged the tradition. So we continue with the Holy Fathers and the traditions that come from the second century, to cry for the Good Thief, DIMAS, SAINT DIMAS.

Who was this original Saint, unique, privileged who deserved the honor to be canonized by the Divine Savior Himself in the soling hour of our Redemption?

He was, before the cross, a dangerous bandit of Palestine. From a family of thieves. His father was the boss of bandits - PRINCEPS LATRONUM.

Several Holy Fathers and authors say that it was Dimas one of the most dangerous rogues in Judea. For the punishment in the cross he deserved, you can see well the great criminal he must have been, because this horrible punishment was saved to only the great thieves and slaves.

Dimas, according to several authors, was not Jewish by birth. It's the opinion of SAINT AUGUSTINE and of SAINT JOHN CRISOSTOMO and EUZËBIO. One of the Christian traditions collector's sages, the Bishop EQUILIUM, says in an absurd way that the good thief was Egyptian. SAINT JOHN DAMASCENE categorically affirms: THIS THIEF WAS EGYPTIAN OF BIRTH. He exerted the banditism in the deserts of the passage to Egypt and there, according to the tradition, met the Sacred Family, and gave shelter to the Boy Jesus protecting Mary and Saint Joseph. Some Doctors and Holy Fathers like S. CIRILO have the opinion that it is not a legend, but a tradition venerable already in the fist century. DIMAS received in his house the Sacred Family who was running away from HERODES. Although a criminal, it was his habit to never to steal, or kill the children, the old or women. There are many legends and pretty traditions of the apocrypha's Evangels around the passage of the Sacred Family through the desert.

However we cannot attach ourselves but to the most venerable and confirmed traditions. Three things seems to be confirmed:

FIRST - Dismas was a renowned thief, a dangerous bandit and a fatidic. He used to do criminal activities on Judea.

SECOND - He was from egyptian origin, pagan, not Jewish. "UP IN THE CROSS, says Saint John Crisostomo, TWO THIEVES, IMAGE OF THE JEWS AND OF THE GENTIES. THE PENITENT THIEF, THE IMAGE OF PAGANISM, WALKING IN MISTAKE, AND COMING BACK FOR THE TRUTH. THE ONE WHO REMAINED THIEF 'TILL DEATH IS THE IMAGE OF THE JEWS. UNTIL THE HOUR OF CRUXIFICATION THEY WALKED IN THE PATH OF CRIME.BUT THE CROSS DIVIDES THEM."

THIRD - Finally: It is certain that he sheltered the Sacred Family in the desert and protected them until their entrance in Egypt.

The name DIMAS is known since the second century, and the great teologist SALMERON, affirms that according to the most ancient traditions studied carefully, the name of the two thieves in the Calvary were GESTAS and DIMAS. The Roman Martirologist says that only in the day of March 25th: "IN JESUSALEM, CELEBRATION OF THE GOOD THIEF THAT IN THE CROSS PROFESSED THE FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST AND DESERVED TO HEAR THIS WORDS: TONIGHT YOU WILL BE WITH ME IN PARADISE". The wise Cardinal BARONIO made this observation: "almost everyone calls him Dimas". The name was taken from the apocryphal Evangels, and so omitted in the Martirologist, but however, there was a certain number of altars and churches with the name and invocation of Saint Dimas. It was only in 1724, to avoid attacks from the highly critics, when the Sacred Congregation of Rites, suppressed the name of Dimas, and says officially the GOOD THIEF. It gave permission to the Order of Mercês, to the Teatinos and many Convents and Dioceses to pray the mass and recite the Office of The GOOD THIEF. The wise reserve of the Church, says Mons. GAUME, in not way is prejudicial to the Tradition, and we can, and we must, invocate the GOOD THIEF with the name of DIMAS.