Second Sunday of Pascha: Thomas Sunday; The Holy Hieromartyr Simeon, Relative of the Lord; Our Venerable Father Stephen, Bishop of Volodymyr in Volhynia.
Acts 5:12-20; John 20:19-31.
Read John 20:19-31
“Eight days later” – that was a long time between Thomas and the other disciples. But the gulf between them was greater than time. The other disciples had seen the risen Lord, been granted peace by him, and been invested with the priestly ministry. Thomas “was not with them” in more ways than one. He would not believe what they “were glad” about, that “they saw the Lord”. That is a divergence about more than evidence; it is a disconnection from heartfelt experience joyfully shared by one’s companions. There is more going on for Thomas here than mere rationality.
We are all at different stages of emotional, social, and spiritual growth, including fallow seasons and even desert times. As we move toward Christ, we will find ourselves bumping into each other. The apostles had been traumatized. In their abandonment of their Lord, some of their wounds were self-inflicted. And in grief we can pull apart as well as come together.
Jesus’ specific personal care of Thomas is reminiscent of Jesus seeing Nathaniel under the fig tree. He addresses Thomas with intimate knowledge, gained even when he was not visibly present. Thomas’s response may seem automatic, but it reveals a prior disposition toward faith in Christ that not everyone chose which put him back in unity with the other disciples.
Then, Jesus cares for us: “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe.” And John makes that blessing available to us: “These are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name.” In choosing faith, we are not only united with Christ, we are restored to a place where we can rejoin others in companionship on our journey.