Seeing and Believing or Believing without Seeing? —Lectionary Reflection for Easter 2A (John 20)

19 When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors were locked where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” 22 When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

 24 But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. 25 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.”

26 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.” 27 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.” 28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 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.”

30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples that are not written in this book. 31 But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.

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                Earlier in the morning Mary Magdalene had gone to the tomb only to discover the tomb empty. Peter and the Beloved Disciple then went to check things out after hearing Mary’s report. After the two male disciples returned home, Jesus appeared to Mary, revealing himself to her as risen from the dead. Later that evening, everyone gathered behind closed doors out of fear. For our purposes, we’ll assume that Mary had reported to the community that Jesus had appeared to her. Whether they believed her message, we’re not told. What we know is that the community gathered behind closed doors Jesus suddenly appears to them. He doesn’t knock on the door, he just appears. When he appears to them, he shows them his hands and side. That is, he showed them his wounds so they would know that it was really him.

                According to verse 18 of John 20, Mary Magdalene had announced to the disciples that she had seen the Lord and reported what Jesus had told her. Whether they believed her report is unknown. Of course, Peter and the Beloved Disciple had seen the empty tomb, though they hadn’t seen the risen Jesus. We can’t be sure what they reported to their companions, but it’s likely the community had been pondering these reports, trying to make sense of them. Could Mary be correct when she reports encountering the risen Christ? If only Peter and the Beloved Disciple had had the same encounter. That would have given them greater assurance. Whatever their disposition was that evening, they might be frightened of their neighbors, but they don’t seem to be frightened of Jesus’ sudden appearance. When Jesus appears he gently greets them with the words: “Peace be with you.” Then he shows them his wounds. After this, the gathered disciples rejoice at seeing him alive. So perhaps they were ready for what occurred amongst them.

                In John’s Gospel, after greeting the disciples, Jesus gets right to business. Having revealed himself to the disciples (and in my mind that includes more than the twelve). Whereas in Matthew and Acts the commissioning of the disciples comes on the day of his Ascension (Mt. 28:19-20; Acts 1:8), here it comes on day one of the new resurrection era. According to John, Jesus tells the disciples “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” Then, echoing the breath of life given to the first human (Gen. 2:7), Jesus breathed on them, imparting to them the Holy Spirit. Then he tells them that even as they receive the Holy Spirit, Jesus empowers them to forgive and retain sins (Jn. 20:21-23). Marianne Meye Thompson suggests that “even as the Father sent Jesus into the world to bring life to the world (3: 16; 5: 26) and gave him the Spirit (1: 33; 3: 34), so now the glorified (i.e., crucified and risen) Jesus (7: 37– 39) breathes out the life-giving Holy Spirit and commissions the disciples to extend his life-giving work in the world through the forgiveness of sins (cf. 8: 21; 16: 8– 11; 14: 12)” [Thompson, John: A Commentary (NTL) (Kindle, p. 420)]. In other words, in this new era, they are being empowered to serve as God’s agents in the world, engaging in life-giving ministry, even as Jesus had previously served in that role.

                On that first evening on that day of Jesus’ resurrection, one person was conspicuously absent. That person was named Thomas. He’s often called “Doubting Thomas,” but we might want to put ourselves in his place. The others had seen Jesus before they believed, why should he be any different? Why he was absent is unknown, but when he later rejoins the group, he hears about their encounter but he’s skeptical. Like many of us, Thomas has questions that need to be answered. He seems to be something of an empiricist, wanting proof. You know, seeing is believing. It’s important to remember that while Thomas had questions about these reports, it’s not as if he was a perennial doubter. He had committed himself to be a follower of Jesus. Even though he was absent that first evening, he had returned to the community. Thus, like many of us, he’s a believer with questions. He wants to see and touch what the others had seen and touched. While Thomas gets a bad rap for his doubts, we should be grateful that this group has within it a person who is willing to ask hard questions. As Jaime Clark-Soles writes, “Thomas is a straight shooter, a practical guy. He may not have much imagination or sense of mystery, but he does have an enquiring mind. Thomas asks the tough questions that others are scared or embarrassed to ask” [Reading John for Dear Life, p. 143].

                 When we come to verse 26, it’s a week after Jesus’ first appearance to the community. It is, liturgically, the second Sunday of Easter. In many churches, the lilies are gone, and folks are ready to get ready for the next holiday (Mother’s Day?). While we might be ready to move on liturgically, the Easter season is just getting started. There’s still time to sing a few more of the great Easter hymns. If you didn’t sing Thine is the Glory on Easter Sunday, there’s still time. The same goes for Up from the Grave He Arose (one of my favorites). Whatever your disposition, it’s a week after Easter Sunday. In the Gospel of John, the community has gathered together once again. This time Thomas is present, likely with all his questions still at the top of his mind. I think he wants to believe, but he wants to be sure the reports are true.

                Now that the community is together in the room, with the doors shut as before, Jesus once again appears suddenly. As far as we can tell from John’s narrative, Jesus doesn’t knock or even open the door. He just appears in the room. Once again, he gives the standard greeting: “Peace be with you.” Then, having greeted the community, Jesus turns to Thomas and invites him to see and touch his hands. He even invites Thomas to put his hand in the wound in his side (whether Thomas did this, John doesn’t say, though it would seem that seeing was believing). He doesn’t criticize Thomas. Instead, Jesus gives Thomas what Thomas needs.  Thomas responds to this invitation by falling on his knees and declaring “My Lord and My God.”

                Thomas’ confession of faith— “My Lord and My God” —should catch our attention. What does Thomas (and John) mean here? We know that John’s Gospel begins with the confession that “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God,” as well as that “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:1, 14). This confession would seem to bookend John’s narrative, with Thomas seemingly confessing the message of the prologue to the Gospel. Marianne Meye Thompson, who seeks to define the Gospel of John in theocentric terms, notes that this is the only time in the Gospel that anyone directly confesses Jesus to be God, and Thomas does so in very personal terms, suggesting worship. She writes further:

That the evangelist sees no contradiction between confession of Jesus as "my God" and as "Son of God" reveals the basic contours of his Christology and sheds some light on the question of what it might mean to worship the risen Jesus. sus. Specifically, it cannot mean to worship a figure alongside of God, or in addition to God, but to acknowledge the propriety of speaking of the one who is the Son of God, the incarnation of the Word of God, as "my God." For John, the incarnation is nothing other than God's self-manifestation. The incarnate Son is neither an exalted agent figure nor a second deity but the very embodiment of the Word of God and, therefore, merits address as "my God." [Thompson, The God of the Gospel of John (Kindle Locations 2749-2753).

After Thomas makes this confession of faith, he sees (and touches) and now believes. His questions have been answered. While Jesus gives Thomas what he needs, which elicits his confession, Jesus also acknowledges that not everyone will have this kind of opportunity. With that in mind, Jesus commends those who believe without seeing. That is, those who like us, must believe sight unseen. We must trust the testimony passed on to us by those who first encountered the risen Christ and confessed him as Lord and Son of God.

                The closing verses of chapter 20 follow up on Jesus’ commendation of those who believe without seeing for themselves. While Jesus did many other signs—remember that in the Gospel of John, we hear of signs, not miracles—that haven’t been included in the book. In John’s view, what we have in the Gospel is sufficient for our purposes. Thus, the signs and testimony that we find in the Gospel, “are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name” (Jn 20:30-31). As it stands, if we are to believe (put our trust in the risen Christ) we must do so based on a testimony that can’t be tested scientifically. We can try to do it historically, but even this won’t be conclusive. We must simply believe without seeing. To do so is to be blessed by God. As we receive this message we can confess with Thomas concerning Jesus: “My Lord and My God.” As we do this, we can continue to celebrate the good news that in Christ life conquers death! 

                So, let us sing with St. John of Damascus:

Now let the heavens be joyful!
Let earth the song begin!
Let the round world keep triumph,
and all that is therein!
Let all things seen and unseen
their notes in gladness blend,
for Christ the Lord hath risen,
our joy that hath no end. 

                (“The Day of Resurrection!” —vs. 3)

 

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