Feast of St. Thomas: John 20:24-29
Whenever we, in our own time, ponder the Gospel accounts of the appearances of the Risen Lord, we may wonder what they were like. We may even feel a touch of envy for people like Peter and Mary Magdalene and Paul, who saw the Risen Lord Jesus. We may say to ourselves, “Well, they saw him; we don’t. They had an advantage over us”. Or so we believe. Going further, we read in the Acts of the Apostles how faith in the presence of the Risen Lord enabled the apostles (and others) to preach, heal, and face great dangers out of love for the Lord. We may wonder how we can encounter the presence and power of the Risen Lord in our own lives.
A closer look at the resurrection appearances in the Gospels will help us greatly. These accounts were written not only to show how the Risen Lord appeared to these first believers; they are also written to give future believers, those who have not seen Jesus, clues as to how they, too, can encounter the Risen Lord. The story of Jesus’ appearance to Thomas is certainly one that can be read on both levels. Continue reading “Thomas”