Blessed Are We . . .

John 20:19 – 29
            Jesus came and stood in their midst . . . He showed them both his hands and his side . . . But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples were saying to him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” . . . After eight days his disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Reach here, Thomas, with your finger, and see my hands; and reach here your hand and put it into my side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.” Thomas answered and said to him “My Lord and my God!”  Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen me, Thomas, you believe. Blessed are they who have not seen, and yet believe.”

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            I heard someone once say that it was Jesus’ friends who came back to life at Easter; that it was Peter and John and Mary Magdalene and Thomas and the rest of his disciples who rose from the tomb of despair and doubt; that what God sent walking out of that empty tomb was the gift of faith — faith that doesn’t require proof to sustain it, faith that lives on 2,000 years later inside of you and me today.

            How many of us have ever hit rock bottom? Ever felt that there was no hope, that we couldn’t push ourselves any further, that we couldn’t face ourselves in the mirror?  How many have ever begged God to change a bad situation, or asked for a sign, some proof that he was really there, that everything would be okay?

Well that’s what’s happening to Thomas and the other disciples in the above Gospel. They are huddled together in fear in the back room of some house in Jerusalem, each one probably making plans to leave town and forget they ever knew each other or Jesus.

            Thomas is not only the star of this story, but I think, in a way, he represents us at different points in our lives. He’s been through a terrible experience. Not only has he lost Jesus but he is probably overcome with shame and guilt for having turned his back and run away when Jesus was arrested. He thinks that the only way things could be alright again would be for God to send him a sign, some proof, the chance to touch the wounds of Jesus. But just when he’s about to give up, he experiences the presence of Jesus within himself. And then something amazing happens: he no longer needs a miracle — he passes on the chance to touch the nail marks of Jesus. Nothing has changed, yet everything has changed — his faith is resurrected. In the end what brings Thomas’ faith back to life is not the proof that he thought he needed, but rather his personal experience of the Risen Christ.

            How many times have we been filled with doubt or anxiety and huddled in some back room like the disciples in this Gospel story? How many times have we faced grief or hurt or loss: perhaps the death of a loved one, or betrayal by a friend, or loss of a job, or maybe positive results from a biopsy? But what sets us apart as modern day disciples of Jesus is that little piece of Thomas that lives within each of us — that part of our soul that refuses to give in to despair; that part of our mind that no longer demands proof.

We are those blessed ones whom Jesus refers to in the Gospel: We are those who have not seen Jesus and yet still believe. We can look on as the Eucharist is elevated at the Consecration of the Mass and say with the same certainty as Thomas, “My Lord and My God!” And we can do this because over and over again, day after day, year after  year, no  matter how many  times we may hit  rock bottom, we experience Christ alive in  our hearts.

Blessed are we who have not seen and yet still believe!

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Readers of this blog might enjoy these books by Deacon Lex. Both are available on Amazon.com:

Just to Follow My Friend: Experiencing God’s Presence in Everyday Life

Synchronicity as the Work of the Holy Spirit: Jungian Insights for Spiritual Direction and Pastoral Ministry