Thomas

What’s it going to take?

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April 8th Sunday Readings.

Getting kids to eat whatever they don’t want to eat can be a monumental task. I realize Photo by Hal Gatewood on Unsplashthat there are strategies that work. Also, negotiation is not most effective way to get children committed to a power struggle to do what you ask them. And, there are times when getting a child to eat green beans or ham (depending on the kid or the moment) just boiling down to the questions, “What is it going to take?”

When faced with unbelief in the lives of our family or friends, or even in the dark corners of our own doubt, I think we could easily ask this question, “What is it going to take?” What is it going to take for you and I to really believe the good news of the gospel? What is it going to take for our sibling or parent or spouse or offspring to believe that Jesus is their Lord? What is it going to take?

In the gospel, we hear about Thomas who states clearly what it will take for him to believe. He says, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nail marks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” It would appear that for Thomas it takes touching the wounds of Christ to believe. At first blush, this seems like a lack of faith. Thomas appears to be put conditions on what it will take for him to believe in the resurrection, but I think there is more going on here.

John, the gospel writer, never states whether Thomas actually touches the wounds of Christ. In fact, Thomas says, “My Lord and my God,” when he simply sees Christ. For Thomas encountering Jesus face to face is enough. Meeting Jesus is what it takes for Thomas to believe.

I believe this to be true for most of us. For most of us, we believe once we have had a face to face encounter with Jesus Christ. Christianity isn’t only a set of beliefs or a moral code, but it is a relationship with a person. To really meet the person of Christ (and not just the idea of Jesus) fundamentally changes us at our core.

When Thomas sees the resurrected Christ, he exclaims, “My Lord and my God.” This profession of faith is one of the most vivid and explicit in all the gospels. By giving Jesus the titles of both Lord and God, Thomas is proclaiming Jesus the same God as the God of his fathers, the Lord God of all Israel and the Old Testament. When we encounter Jesus face to face, we know Jesus is God.

Live It:
Jesus lives. If we really believe in the resurrection we will look for him now. Two suggestions: Look for Jesus in the Eucharist and in the poor.

The Good Word for April 12th

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For the complete Sunday readings, click here.kvefr1374s

When I was 21 years old, I went to Christmas Midnight Mass in Notre Dame Cathedral in Parish. Needless to say it was pretty amazing – beautiful liturgy in one of the grand churches in our faith. But I almost didn’t make it inside the building. While we were waiting in line, the police announced in multiple languages that the church was full and there would be no more room. Many people left. But my friends and I stuck around and sure enough in about 15 minutes they opened up the doors and we were allowed in.

“Good things come to those who wait,” is a classic piece of sage wisdom. We see this in our gospel this Sunday. Jesus appears to the disciples, but Thomas is absent. When Thomas returns he doubts his friends in a grand speech. The next line starts like this, “Now a week later his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them.” If your friends started saying that they spoke to your executed and buried leader, would you stick around for a week? Would you remain with them?

Even though Thomas doubts what his fellow disciples were saying, he still sticks around. Even though he doubted their witness and questioned the resurrection, Thomas stays with the group until Jesus returns.

And how is he rewarded for staying with the other disciples and remaining in the community? He meets the resurrected Jesus Christ face to face. Thomas’ response to this encounter is to affirm that the risen Jesus is his, “Lord and God.”

What do we learn from Thomas and his story? If we are doubting or questioning our faith, if it is hard for us to believe the witness of our friends or understand the confident faith of others at church, our best response is to stick around. Even when we aren’t “getting anything out of church,” or finding it hard to believe, if we are willing to wait, God will make himself known and meet us in our unbelief. Then, after meeting the risen Lord face to face, we too can say that Jesus is our Lord and God.

Live It:
Give God 2 more minutes. Either at the end of your prayer time or after Mass this weekend, sit back down and close your eyes and pray for just 2 more minutes asking God to be with you the following week. Invite your family to do this as well; you might be surprised by Jesus.