Peter Thomas, OCarm (1305–1366), also known as Petrus de Thomas or Pierre de Thomas, was a French Carmelite friar and is recognized as a saint by the Catholic Church. He was a Master of Theology and a noted preacher. Thomas was entrusted with a number of diplomatic missions by the Holy See.
Life
Peter Thomas was born around the year 1305 to a very poor family in Périgord. His father was a serf. At the age of twelve, he left his parents and his younger sister to ease the burdens on his family and went to the nearby small town of Monpazier. He attended school for about three years, living on alms and teaching younger pupils. He led the same type of life at Agen, studying at the College of the Carmelites until the age of twenty, when he returned to Monpazier briefly, before going to Lectoure.
Carmelite friar
In 1325 the prior of the Carmelite convent of Lectoure employed Thomas as a teacher for a year in that school. He entered the Carmelite Order at the age of twenty-one and made his profession of religious vows at Bergerac where he taught for two years. He studied philosophy at Agen, where he was ordained a priest three years later. For the next few years, he continued his studies, while also teaching in Bordeaux, Albi, and again in Agen. This was followed by three years of study in Paris. He was preaching in Cahors, during a procession held to in hopes of an end to a serious drought, when rain began to fall. This was viewed by many as miraculous.
He was the Order's Procurator General and an official preacher at the Papal Court of Pope Clement VI at Avignon where he then assisted the Master of Theology as head of the curia department dealing with doctrinal matters submitted to the pope.
Diplomat
In October 1353, Pope Innocent VI appointed legate to regularizing relations between the rival republics of Venice and Genoa. The parties failed to find any ground of agreement and the attempt at mediation was not successful. In 1348, he was sent to the Kingdom of Naples in order to negotiate an agreement concerning the appointment of the tutor of the two daughters of the late Charles of Durazzo. His widow (Marie d'Anjou) and the King of Naples had one candidate, and the paternal grandmother of the children had another. Although she was the sister of Cardinal Hélie Talleyrand, the King prevailed.
Bishop
In 1354 he was made bishop of Patti and Lipari and In 1354-1358, Peter Thomas, promoted bishop of Patti and Lipari7, was sent to Serbia with the main objectives of putting an end to the vexatious measures against the Catholics of Serbia and evaluating the intentions of Stefan Dusan concerning his desire to unify the Orthodox Church of Serbia with the Roman Catholic Church. Dusan's goal was in fact to find political support in order to set out, under the cover of defense of the Catholic faith, to conquer Byzantium and its Empire. In view of the complex geopolitical situation and the lack of honesty of the ruler of Serbia, this mission of Peter Thomas did not succeed, in spite of his efforts.
In the spring of 1356, Thomas, with the Dominican Guglielmo Conti, bishop of Sizebolu, went to Venice and met with Louis I of Hungary to arrange a peace treaty between Venice and Hungary over Dalmatia, but despite his efforts, the negotiations became bogged down and no peace treaty was signed. In April 1357, Thomas went as papal legate to Constantinople, to receive the submission of the Emperor of Byzantium to the Roman Catholic Church in exchange for military support of the West to block the expansion of the Ottoman Empire. But the military supports promised in the exchanges does not materialize. In 1358, Peter Thomas went on a private pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
In 1359, Pope Innocent VI appointed Peter Thomas Universal Legate for the East. In the summer of 1359, Bishop Thomas left for Smyrna accompanied by a fleet supplied by the Venetians and the Hospitallers of Rhodes. He strengthened the city's defenses, paid the soldiers, ensured the supply of the city and the appointment of a new governor. He also went to Constantinople and took part in the battles of Lampsach. Philippe de Mezières wrote: "Physically involved in the battle, Pierre Thomas stimulated the troops: it was necessary to avoid a stampede [in front of the janissaries]. The bishop gave of himself, he encouraged, he struck, sword in fist ". Between defeats and victories, Pierre Thomas was "tireless, leading the troops into battle by his example and his exhortations, sometimes in Smyrna, sometimes in Rhodes, sometimes in Constantinople, sometimes in Cyprus, sometimes in the island of Crete, and sometimes in Turkey with a few galleys".