"... do not be unbelieving, but believe."

"On the evening of that first day of the week,

when the doors were locked, where the disciples were,

for fear of the Jews,

Jesus came and stood in their midst

and said to them, 'Peace be with you.'

When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side.

The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

Jesus said to them again, 'Peace be with you.

As the Father has sent me, so I send you.'

And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them,

'Receive the Holy Spirit.

Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them,

and whose sins you retain are retained.'

Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve,

was not with them when Jesus came.

So the other disciples said to him, 'We have seen the Lord.'

But he said to them,

'Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands

and put my finger into the nailmarks

and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.'

Now a week later his disciples were again inside

and Thomas was with them.

Jesus came, although the doors were locked, 

and stood in their midst and said, 'Peace be with you.'

Then he said to Thomas, 'Put your finger here and see my hands,

and bring your hand and put it into my side,

and do not be unbelieving, but believe.'

Thomas answered and said to him, 'My Lord and my God!'

Jesus said to him, 'Have you come to believe because you have seen me?

Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.'

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples

that are not written in this book.

But these are written that you may come to believe

that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God,

and that through this belief you may have life in his name."

(Jn 20:19-29)

The Second Sunday of Easter - Divine Mercy Sunday. The divine mercy of our God is evident in today's Gospel reading - first, in Christ's conferring of the gift of the Holy Spirit on the apostles, which included the gift of forgiving sins ("Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain, are retained."). 

The mercy of Jesus is also clear when he invites the unbelieving Thomas to touch his sacred wounds. In that act of showing Thomas his wounds, and inviting him to touch them, he makes the Resurrection real for him. Jesus is showing Thomas what love and sacrifice are all about. 

I think it's interesting to consider, too, that today we find Thomas in a position similar to the one we saw all eleven apostles in, in yesterday's Gospel reading from Mark - a position of not only unbelief, but unbelief based upon rejection of the words of others who had seen Jesus. Here, Thomas is the unbelieving member of the group, and again, it's interesting to consider why he initially refuses to believe? Did he simply doubt the truth of the Resurrection? Did he doubt the messengers - the other apostles? Or was he scared? If Jesus was truly risen, would Thomas be judged for having deserted Christ after the Last Supper? The fear of finding out Jesus had risen from the dead could have been just as intense as the joy of knowing the truth of the resurrection, if one was terrified of judgment. 

In any case, whether Thomas' unbelief was based in fear or doubt, those things were allayed by the mercy of Christ in his invitation to belief - though Christ does still admonish Thomas that it is more blessed to have not seen and have believed than to require that "proof." 

Although I think it's true that in this age, we who believe do believe without having seen - we believe through the Word, as St. John notes at the end of today's reading - I also know there's a little bit of Thomas in all of us, isn't there? Don't we all want that "proof?" For those of us who are Catholic, and experience the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist, well, I think that's definitely a form of seeing and believing. But generally speaking, I think sometimes we all look for a sign that God is really there - that this is all real, and not some grand hoax. Right? Or maybe it's really just me and my overly scientifically driven brain that has the tendency to want "proof." I've asked God for that proof before, and he has certainly obliged me with it! 

Would that we might have that incredible faith that simply believes, that understands the love and sacrifice of Christ, and requires no proof. I wish I did, and I pray that someday I may have that faith, and overcome my own Thomas-ness. 

+Peace, and all good, and a blessed Divine Mercy Sunday!

OK - so, last week, I said I'd try to share pics of the Shrine of St. Bernadette, where I attended Easter Vigil - all dressed up for Easter. I finally had the opportunity to go and make some photographs, so thought I would share them tonight, as promised. :-)