Gospel JN 20:24-29
Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve,
was not with them when Jesus came.
So the other disciples said to him, “We have seen the Lord.”
But Thomas said to them,
“Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands
and put my finger into the nailmarks
and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
Now a week later his disciples were again inside
and Thomas was with them.
Jesus came, although the doors were locked,
and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.”
Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side,
and do not be unbelieving, but believe.”
Thomas answered and said to him, “My Lord and my God!”
Jesus said to him, “Have you come to believe because you have seen me?
Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”
Reflection:
Putting myself in Thomas’ place, I cannot help but wonder if I would have reacted any differently than he did.
I picture myself being identified as one of Jesus’ followers and hiding out from the authorities who had killed him.
Listening to accounts of his having been seen alive, I have to question whether I would have believed.
I may well have dismissed my friend’s report of having seen the Lord as hallucinations or the wishful thinking of men who were desperately afraid for their lives.
There have been many times during my spiritual journey when I have had doubts. During the days when we were trying to construct the My Brother’s Keeper building, there were many ups and downs in the process.
I remember a time when we had hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of materials “on the ground” and we lost our building site. My faith and my courage nearly failed. But, we kept on going, and in the end, God delivered our current location and all went well.
Like Thomas, I have had many questions and doubts while following Jesus.
The point is, Thomas, upon seeing the Lord, did believe just as the other apostles believed when they saw Jesus a week earlier.
Following Jesus’ ascension into heaven, Thomas brought the word of Christ to India, where he was martyred, pierced with a spear for refusing to worship an idol.
Christ does not count our stumbling along the way against us.
Instead, he sees our love for him, and waits with open arms to welcome us when we finally arrive home.
It would be better if I focus on the faith of people rather than waste time focusing on their doubts.
“God doesn’t call us to be successful. He calls us to faithful. And faithfulness cannot be unsuccessful” Albert Hubbard