Thought on the Apostle Thomas

                 

     Doubting Thomas

The second Sunday of Easter always has the Gospel story of Jesus' appearance to the apostle Thomas.



For some reason he wasn't with the others on Easter when Jesus first came to console them in their grief at His death. They excitedly told Thomas how Jesus had come to them with a greeting of Shalom, Peace, and a blessing of the Holy Spirit. It was just too much for Thomas, too good to be true, to be real. He puts his conditions for faith in words demanding the opportunity to put his finger into the nail holes in Jesus' hands and his hand into the wound in His side. His doubts got him a personal appearance from Jesus. He came back just for Thomas. The Gospel doesn't tell us whether Thomas did as he had demanded but I don't believe he did. He didn't have to. This was clearly Jesus putting himself at Thomas' disposal, treating him with love as He always had. Thomas is overwhelmed and cries out, "My Lord and my God."

    As we age and mature, we too may experience times of doubt, wanting and needing reassurances of the Lord's victory over our sins and death. That's when we can expect a personal appearance as the Lord comes to us in His Eucharist, speaks to us in creation and silence, hugs us with the arms of our loved ones who share our destiny and faith in our loving and merciful Lord and God.

Fr. Ralph Huse, S.J.