When St. Thomas Aquinas was a student in the university, his fellow classmates thought that he was not very smart. They came to this conclusion because he was by nature very slow and quiet, keeping all his thoughts to himself and hardly speaking to anyone including his teachers. All of these traits, combined with the fact that he was bigger than most of them, made the students give him the unkind nickname of "the dumb ox," because he seemed as slow, silent, and stupid as one.

One day, as St. Thomas was walking by, a student suddenly gasped and cried out: "Thomas, look at the flying ox!"

Thomas quickly glanced around in astonishment. Yet no matter where he looked, he could not see the strange animal anywhere. Filled with confusion, Thomas turned to his classmate, his face beckoning for an explanation. The boy, however, pleased with his mean prank, burst out laughing at his ‘dumb’ friend.

"Oh, Thomas," he laughed, "I can’t believe you would be so gullible. Did you honestly believe there was a flying ox?"

Thomas’ look of confusion was replaced by one of displeasure, and he said gravely, "It is much easier to believe that an ox could fly than that a Catholic could tell a lie."