Alberic Jacovone OSB
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YEAR B
2ND SUNDAY OF EASTER - 23.4.06
Acts 4,32-35; 1 Jn 5,1-6; Jn 20,19-31
To see is to believe! - how?
The convincing of Thomas.
Today, we celebrate an event that took place twice: on the day wen Jesus
appeared to the apostles & Thomas was not there & ‘8 days later’
when Thomas was present with them. It’s an event packed with emotions from
everyone: even we -as we read the story 2006 years later, become present, when
Jesus says: ‘happy those who have not seen & yet have believed’. We have
given the story many titles: Thomas, the doubting, dis-believing, stubborn one,
who however becomes a strong witness & the
‘convincing
Thomas’. The story makes us aware that it took time for Jesus’ disciples to
go from stark unbelief into stunning surprise & amazement, till they became
fearless witnesses of the resurrection, ready to give their life to proclaim
that ‘the Lord is Risen!’. Indeed it took time for the individual believers
to fathom & feel reassured, as to how the ‘continuing presence of Jesus’
was being realized: of the 11 apostles however, Thomas is the most reluctant
one, the one who demanded ‘to put the finger-in’, as proof that Jesus, whom
they all saw dead in such a horrendous & shameful way, was the same real
person they had lived with & loved, & was now for real & fully
alive... Only God could do this, & only Thomas prayed in all humility: ‘my
Lord & my God’. Thomas’ story, when made into an Icon by orthodox
artists, is called: ‘The Shut Door’, to emphasize that the event takes place
indoors, indeed behind shut doors, as the disciples has ‘locked themselves
in’, for fear of the Jews. Jesus nonetheless comes through the shut door &
stands in front of it, & invites Thomas to doubt no longer & believe.
Jesus & today’s doubting Toms. Today’s
story is important. It helps us reflect on the qualities of the ‘risen’ body of Christ, capable of penetrating
compact matter (such as shut-doors).
Several times, the Risen Jesus insisted with his disciples that he was not a
ghost, but himself with his physical body. He convinced them by eating food they
offered & of course he carried on his flesh the scars of his crucifixion:
Thomas dared to put his finger in the holes, that the nails had made in Jesus’
hands & even his whole hand into Jesus’ side... Today’s story is meant
for us: we are the ones that Jesus calls blessed if we believe even if we have
not seen. It was not Thomas alone who refused to believe in Jesus’
resurrection, when the other apostles told him that they had seen the Risen
Lord. Every right minded person would & has agreed with him. The point
Thomas is making is valid: it is not good enough to claim that someone is risen
from the dead, soon as people claim they have had a vision of the dead person.
He felt he had to go further that seeing Jesus with his naked eye, so he said:
‘if I do not place my finger in the mark of the nails and the hand in his side
I refuse to believe’. In this modern world of ours, every sensible man &
woman can & does identify with Thomas, in his doubts, hesitation, &
demands of further proof. Across the centuries, Thomas has remained the
strongest witness of Christ’s resurrection. Every convert to Christianity has
been grateful to Thomas for his passion & his expectations, from St
Augustine to St Gregory down to our time. Lesson:
When was the last time we have experienced doubts & uncertainties about our
journey of faith, justice in the world, tragedies in our families & in our
life, about the loss of our beloved ones (especially young), about matters of
life & eternal life? When was the last time when we have had a special
religious experience & thought it was only a dream? How do we resolve our
tensions in life & how close do we feel to our ‘Risen Lord’, now?
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