Daily Gospel Reflection
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July 3, 2020
Thomas (who was called Didymus, the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “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.”
A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.”
Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”
This passage from John’s Gospel is a wonderful example of the Lord meeting us where we are at. Thomas struggles to believe that the Lord has truly risen. He does not accept the testimony of his fellow disciples that they have actually seen the Lord alive. Thomas lays out the requirements for him to come to believe: he has to see the crucifixion wounds of Christ and actually touch these wounds.
A week later, the Lord returns to the disciples and Thomas is present. Rather than scold Thomas for his unbelief, the Lord gently invites Thomas to see and touch his wounds, both in his hands and in his side, and to put aside his doubt and believe.
Now the passage from John is silent as to whether Thomas actually touched the Lord’s wounds or only saw the wounds and came to believe. The famous Renaissance painter Caravaggio depicted this well-known Gospel scene (the painting The Incredulity of Thomas is now in the Sanssouci Picture Gallery in Potsdam, Germany) and shows Christ gently guiding Thomas’ index finger into the lance wound in his side. The painting presents Christ creating a real intimacy with Thomas so that Thomas can cast aside his doubt and come to believe. I suspect that Caravaggio has it correct, that the Lord actually had Thomas touch his wounds so that Thomas could come to believe.
So too with us. The Lord gently invites us to believe. He is anxious to share an intimacy with us in order to help us come to belief, if only we reach out to him with a willingness to touch his wounds. Let us all be willing to share that intimacy with our Lord—to probe his love for us—and believe in him.
Prayer
Jesus, we admire your patience with the disciples, and yet you also balanced it with truth. You understood where Thomas was coming from, but at the same time gave him a challenge. You are merciful, compassionate, and fully understand our human weakness. You know our fears, the things which hold us back from trusting you and from becoming fully ourselves. But you won’t let us use those things as an excuse. There is always a challenge to grow, and with the challenge comes the grace to meet it. Thank you for caring so much about us.
Saint of the Day
As one of the twelve disciples, St. Thomas was one of the closest followers of Christ.
His humanity is on full display in the Gospel. At first, he urges his friends to follow Christ, even to death, as they approach Jerusalem, the headquarters for the enemies of Jesus. Then, when Jesus is arrested, he runs away like almost everyone else.
One night after the death and resurrection of Jesus, the Lord appeared to the disciples, who were locked in the upper room. Thomas happened to be absent, and when his friends told him that they had seen Jesus, he said, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nail-marks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe” (John 20: 19-29).
A week later, Jesus appeared to the group again, and this time Thomas is able to place his fingers in the very wounds of Christ. He professed his belief with the words, “My Lord and my God.”
After Pentecost, Thomas went east, evangelizing people all the way to India. He was martyred in India in the year 72—legend has it that he was stabbed with a spear while he was praying. He holds the spear of his martyrdom in many of his depictions, including these statues from campus.
Because of all the churches he built in India, St. Thomas is the patron saint of architects and builders. The statue on the left stands on the north face of Cushing Hall of Engineering, and the other can be found on Crowley Hall, which now houses music programs but used to house science and engineering labs. His relics rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica.
This desire to know by touching is common to the human condition. As children, we come to know the world through touching and manipulating it. If we can feel it, we know it is real. Yet, what is most real and true about our life—that it is rooted in God—escapes our senses. Jesus says to Thomas and to us: “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”
St. Thomas, you believed because you saw the risen Lord, and helped others believe on faith alone—pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of St. Thomas the Apostle is in the public domain. Last accessed March 19, 2025 on Wikimedia Commons.
