Saturday, April 13, 2013

They Were All Thomases

What really stuck with me this week, was that Thomas gets a bad rap. 

Nine times out of ten, he is singled out as Doubting Thomas, not grouped with the other Apostles.

And part of that does wonders for our faith.  As Victor so astutely points out in this post, Thomas provided us with even more evidence of Christ's Resurrection. 

But the ironic thing - the thing that kept nagging at me all week - was that all of the Apostles were doubting Thomases, were they not?  

Jesus told them that He was going to rise on the third day, and they still sat locked in their homes after His death, afraid and confused.  It was not until they saw Him that they believed.

Likewise, when Mary Magdalene tells the Apostles that she saw the risen Lord, Luke tells us they did not believe her.  It was not until John and Peter see the empty tomb that they believed her.

Weren't they just like Thomas?  Did they not need visible proof before they believed?

Don't get me wrong, I don't think we need to add "Doubting" in front of every Apostle's name.  Heck, if that were the case, we'd have to add it to all of ours as well.  But maybe we can add an asterisk or something next to Thomas' to clarify that he wasn't the only one.  Or put air quotes around "doubting" to indicate the irony.

Perhaps I will send a note to our newly elected Pope and see if he will champion this cause for me.  

(Yes, I know what you are thinking.  You'll believe it when you see it...)


Blessed are those who have not seen but believe.

 

5 comments:

Victor S E Moubarak said...

This Doubting Victor seeks forgiveness whenever his Faith falters as life gets ever more difficult.

Yes ... I think you should write to the Pope. It is time our priests said in their sermons that doubting and being weak in Faith is part of our human nature; and we get stronger with prayers.

God bless you Michael for another brilliant post.

Unknown said...

My thoughts are very similar to Colleen's. I always felt everyone was a little hard on poor Thomas. Yet to this day, his short but powerful profession of faith is prayed by so many at the elevation of the host and chalice.
Thanks and God bless, Michael.

Mary N. said...

Hi Michael,
I always felt a bit bad for Thomas,
to be known as the doubter. You are right they all were doubters. It wasn't until the Holy Spirit came down upon them that they were filled with faith. Great post!

Michael said...

Colleen: You are right! It is quite ironic, and very powerful!

Victor: Amen to that. I think it is important that people understand Faith isn't easy. I always say one of the greatest things God ever did was choose such human people as Apostles. And Saints for that matter. Realizing that even these great people made mistakes can help us in our Faith.

Karinann: Great point! Sometimes I forget we owe that to Thomas.

Mary: Shows us how powerful the Holy Spirit is huh? I pray we all get even some of that strength!

Thank you all for your comments and God Bless you!

Daily Grace said...

I agree with you and the others that have commented above. They were all doubters , just like me, just like all of us in so many situations. Great post Michael.