Homily (Reflection) for the Feast of
Saint Thomas, Ap. (03rd July, 2020) on the Gospel and the Feast
Eph 2:19-22;
Ps 116. (R. Mk 16:15);
Jn 20:24-29.
Saint Thomas was born a Jew. He was a dedicated but
impetuous follower of Christ. Saint Thomas was the apostle who exhorted the
other apostles to accompany Jesus on His visit to Lazarus which involved
certain danger and possible death because of the mounting hostility of the
authorities, cf. Jn 11:7-8.16. He
was also the person who pleaded with Jesus that they did know neither the place
nor the way to where He was going, cf. Jn
14:3-5. His refusal to believe when the other apostles told him that they
had seen the risen Lord earned him the nickname, ‘doubting Thomas’, cf. Jn 20:24-25. Saint Thomas was present
when Jesus appeared to some of His apostles by the Sea of Tiberias, cf. Jn 21:1-4.
Topic: Doubt no longer.
In today’s gospel, when the other apostles told Thomas that
they had seen the Lord, he did not believe them. For him, only two things would
convince him: “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” (Jn 20:25).
Thomas’ problem was not unique to him. When the women who first
witnessed Jesus’ resurrection told the eleven that Jesus is risen, they did not
believe. It seemed to them like an idle tale, cf. Lk 12:1-11; Mk 16:9-11. Again, they did not believe the report of
two others whom He appeared to, cf. Mk
16:12-13. So unbelief was common with all the apostles. Hence, Jesus was
displeased with Thomas’ disbelief and lack of faith in today’s gospel just like
those of others, cf. Mk 16:14.
We may have lost faith in God. Lack of faith manifests its
ugly head in different forms. In some, it is in the form of moving from one
church to another, in others moving from one man or woman of God to another. In
some others, it is going to native doctors directly or indirectly, among so
many other forms. Losing faith costs a lot. Moses was not able to lead the
Israelites into the Promised Land because he broke faith with God, cf. Deut 32:51.
Saint James rightly noted that “faith by itself, if it has no
works, is dead” (Jas 2:17). It is
expressed in works of charity, cf. Gal
5:6. The righteous one shall live by faith (Heb 10:38, cf. Hab 2:4).
The Letter to the Hebrews also tells us, “without faith it is impossible to
please him [God].” (Heb 11:6). It is
through faith that one can conquer the world, cf. 1Jn 5:4.
God is telling us today, “Do not doubt [any longer] but
believe” (Jn 20:27). The Letter to
the Hebrews defined faith as “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction
of things not seen” (Heb 11:1).
Bible Reading: Deut 32:48-52; Heb 11:1-38; Jas 2:14-26.
Thought for today: Have you ever broke faith with God?
Let us pray: Lord Jesus Christ, give us the grace
to believe especially when it seems unreasonable to our human thinking so that we
can say with the psalmist: “I kept my faith, even when I said, ‘I am greatly
afflicted’”, (Ps 116:10) – Amen.
Saint Thomas the Apostle – Pray for
us.
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