April 12- We’re All Thomas Now
Speaker: Rev. Paul Walker

Scripture: John 20:24-31

Thomas was absent when Jesus first appeared to the disciples in the upper room.

Whereas the other disciples exclaimed that Jesus was risen from the dead, Thomas is

not so sure. Instead Thomas says, ““Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my

finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”(v25) A

week passes by where Thomas remains skeptical about the resurrection. And who

could blame Thomas? Nobody thought the Messiah would die, let alone be risen from

the dead. In a secular age we’ve all encountered the same roadblock to belief as

Thomas. As sons of the Enlightenment and daughters of Modernity, we’re all Thomas

now. But Jesus is not discouraged or upset by Thomas. Jesus appears to Thomas and

allows him to touch the wounds of crucifixion. “Place your finger here”(Jn 20:27)

Thomas then exclaims, “My Lord, and My God.” Jesus does not scold Thomas for

doubting. If Thomas goes from belief, doubt, and re-belief—- perhaps we are allowed

to as well? What if doubt is not the enemy of faith but the evidence that we have a faith

that is seeking understanding? (Fides quaerens intellectum) What if doubt is a

companion on the journey of understanding as we pursue Endless Mystery? What if

doubt is the doorway to each new way of knowing, each new perspective?