Dearly
Beloved Brethren,
Nobody
knows the time or even the place that our Lord is returning to judge the living
and the dead. For this reason, the Fathers of our Church do not tell us to try
and outsmart God, by predicting the time that He will appear. On the contrary
the Fathers concentrate on teaching us to be constantly ready and watchful, by
praying, fasting and doing works of love and faith. We are instructed to expect
a sudden if not instant entry of our Lord.
In the
final chapter of the Book of Revelations, the Apocalypse of St John the
Theologian, we are informed that we must fully accept the imminent coming of
our Lord Jesus Christ. Furthermore we are told that our world will suffer
terribly before the Second Coming of our Lord and that this world will be
destroyed. Nevertheless so let it be, in obedience we should pray "Even
so, come, Lord Jesus" (Rev 22:20) and come quickly.
In John
chapter 20 we are told of the pitiful sight of the Apostles who gathered in a
small dark house for fear of the Jews after the death of our Lord Jesus Christ.
They had locked every window and door, and they were in a state of mourning.
They must have been deeply depressed, angry, disillusioned, confused and very afraid
to say the least.
Instead
of waiting eagerly for the coming of their Lord, they probably feared that the
world was about to end for them on a cross. Instead of standing well, standing
with fear and trembling in expectation of their Lord, they were crouched down
in complete darkness and gave way to their material fear for their lives. They
perhaps were so horrified at what had happened to their teacher Jesus Christ
that they could not stand to go through the same torment and pain.
When the
news reached them that Jesus was alive, they probably thought, “How was it
possible for the corpse of Jesus to rise from the dead when they knew that His
body was so mutilated, beaten and pierced with large nails and a spear in His
side?”.
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| Incredulity of Saint Thomas, Early XIV Century,
St Mary Perivleptos Church, Ohrid Icon Gallery.
The
Gospel reading tells us, "When it was evening on that day, the first day
of the week… Jesus came (to his disciples) and stood in the midst of them and
said "Peace be with you". After showing the disciples the nail marks
on His hands and the gash in his side, again He said to them: "Peace be
with you".
Then He
started to commission them; this was the beginning of the Great Apostolic
mission to the world. "As the Father sent me" he told them, "I
also send you". Jesus then told His Apostles, "Receive the Holy
Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain
the sins of any, they are retained". What a great thing happened that day,
the power to forgive sins, the authority of judgment was given to the Apostles
to pass on, from generation to generation, from Apostle to Apostle.
However,
where was St Thomas, the other Apostle, when all of this was happening?.
Unfortunately we do not know, however, we are told by the Holy Fathers that it
was "by divine economy" that "he was not there."
Nevertheless,
as soon as the other disciples saw St Thomas they cried out, "We have seen
the Lord!.” However, the missing disciple Thomas was not so easily convinced
and probably thought, “Perhaps it was an illusion a ghost of some sort”. St
Thomas then told his fellow disciples, "Unless I see the mark of the nails
in His hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails, and my hand in his
side, I will not believe".
Do not
misjudge Thomas, for perhaps he remembered the words of his master Jesus
Christ, Who once proclaimed, "If anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the
Christ!' or, “There He is!” do not believe it. For false christs and false
prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the
elect, if that were possible. See, I have told you ahead of time".
"So
if anyone tells you, 'There He is, out in the desert', do not go out; or, 'Here
He is, in the inner rooms', do not believe it. For just as lightning that comes
from the east is visible even in the west, this is also how the coming of the
Son of Man will be" (Matt 24:23-27). St Thomas probably did not wish to
believe until he had substantial proof, in order to keep the word of Christ.
Within
eight days however, Jesus appeared to the disciples again just as suddenly as
He did the last time, but this time St Thomas was present. Although the doors
were all shut and there was no possibility of entry, Jesus appeared to them,
from nowhere, and stood amongst them. St Thomas most probably thought 'surely
He must be a ghost, a vision, a false Christ'. Jesus then spoke "Peace be
with you" and He said to St Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my
hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but
believe". And St Thomas answered with such assurance and conviction,
"My Lord and my God!"
The Holy
Tradition of the Church tells us that St Thomas did not touch our Lord, nor did
he ever contemplate on doing so after seeing Him, because he quickly realized
that it is not only the human senses which are required to discern the Truth
but both the divine senses of the heart, called Faith, working together with
the human senses of reasoning.
In order
to show that faith of the heart is a greater virtue than reasoning alone, Jesus
said to him, "You have believed because you have seen me. Blessed are
those who have not seen and yet have come to believe" (John 21:29). So,
brethren, truly we are blessed if we have not seen and yet we do believe. Have
you noticed how many gather together throughout the world and cry out and
proclaim every Pascha (Easter) "Christ is Risen!" and "Truly He
is Risen!" We have not seen, and yet we do believe for almost 2000 years
now.
"Blessed are those who have not seen and
yet have come to believe" (John 21:29).
Dear
brethren, the skepticism of the Apostles and especially that of St Thomas is
not detrimental; it is in fact very beneficial, if not vital, for the whole of
Christianity. Sound discretion and good judgment are vital for spiritual
matters, and the Resurrection event of our Lord is no exception.
In the
secular world St Thomas is known as Doubting Thomas, but in the Orthodox
Christian Church he is known as Believing Thomas.
For this
reason the Apostles had to be sure that Jesus rose from the dead in order to
proclaim the TRUTH, which is WITHOUT DOUBT so that we may believe without doubt
that "Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing
[we] may have life in His name". So that we may be blessed, by having a
faith which comes from the heart, the soul, and not purely from our human
senses of reasoning.
May the
grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with us all. Amen.
Reference:
http://www.orthodoxchristian.info/pages/Thomas_Sun.htm
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