Rector's Reflection: Honest Thomas, April 26, 2025

Beloved Members of St. Martin’s,

The gospel for the second Sunday of Easter centers on the story of Thomas the Twin, who, logically enough to most of us, wants to see proof that Jesus has been raised from the dead. Every year, this is the gospel we get on this Sunday, and a lot of people just dismiss Thomas as someone whose key characteristic is his doubt, rather than his faith. And that seems pretty hypocritical, to be honest. A faithless person would have left the apostles’ fellowship and gone his own way. And that makes Thomas a comforting figure to so many people who try to take their faith seriously enough to hold it up to scrutiny.

Which of us wouldn’t have felt cheated, like Thomas did, for having missed seeing the real Jesus standing among the other disciples, and instead hearing this incredible story second-hand? Those other apostles expected Thomas to believe when they themselves had the comfort of witnessing their risen Lord in the flesh. Thomas may have doubt- but he has hope as well, or he wouldn’t express his skepticism in the first place.

We are all in Thomas’s situation, 2000 years after the Resurrection. Being a Christian now means believing without seeing with our eyes, but instead with our hearts.

It means being willing to sit – even companionably at times—with our own doubts. It means being willing to confront the same kind of protests that Thomas is brave enough to speak aloud. There are all kinds of contradiction here. The disciples have been told that the thing that should bring them the most joy in the world has actually happened, but they respond by locking their doors for fear in the first verse of the gospel that we hear today. They should be shouting alleluias all over Jerusalem. Instead they themselves are cowering behind locked doors. That fearful barricading behind doors is certainly an expression of their own doubts, even after they themselves have seen Jesus in the flesh. And yet, Thomas down through history takes the rap for his boldness in speaking aloud his need for proof. Thomas’s challenges echo even as the alleluias have just been brought out of storage by us. How can alleluia and doubt exist side-by-side?

Having doubts, and asking questions, especially about your faith, is a sign of faithfulness. It’s a reminder that our love of God goes beyond rote assent but involves acgive engagement. I hope you are honest enough to acknowledge when you have doubt, and are never ashamed of your living faith. I hope instead, that when it comes to doubt, we can all be honest like Thomas.

In Christ’s love,

Mother Leslie+