|
|
|
2nd Easter Sunday Acts of the Apostles 2:14a, 22-32 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Gospel according to John 20:19-31 When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you." After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you." When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained." But Thomas (who was called 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." Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer. Amen.
For many people and many churches Easter has come and gone. Last Sunday the Easter eggs were hidden and found, the resurrection of Jesus was celebrated with much joy, and now Easter is over. But for those of us in the Episcopal Church the season of Easter has just begun – the Alleluia is back – this is a season of joy and celebration of the risen Christ – 50 days of Easter that ends with Pentecost. Today is the Second Sunday of Easter. Every year the Gospel reading is the same – a reading that is quite often referred to as the story of Doubting Thomas. But who is this Thomas? When Jesus decides it is time to go to Mary, Martha and Lazarus, Thomas is the only disciple who encourages the others to accompany Jesus into Judea where the people had recently tried to stone Jesus to death– even if going back means dying with Jesus, Thomas is ready to go. Thomas is the one who seems slow to get the point Jesus is trying to make in chapter 14 of John’s gospel when he confesses his ignorance about where Jesus is going and saying that he doesn’t know how to get there. But Thomas is mostly remembered for today’s gospel reading where he refuses to believe in Jesus’ resurrection until he has seen the wounds on Jesus’ hands and has touched the hands and side of Jesus. I tend to think that Thomas gets a bum rap every year when this gospel is read. Because he wasn’t there when Jesus showed up the first time to the disciples, Thomas wants proof for himself. When Jesus appears first to the other disciples, they are frightened and sitting behind locked doors. They seem to be just as skeptical as Thomas – Jesus greets them saying, "Peace be with you." But it isn’t until AFTER Jesus shows them his pierced hands and side that the disciples rejoice and know it is Jesus. Thomas, however, doesn’t seem to be scared like the other disciples. He isn’t hiding behind the locked doors that first Easter evening. When Jesus comes back to show Thomas his pierced hands and side, Thomas doesn’t appear to be afraid. Instead he proclaims, "My Lord and my God!" This is the first time in John’s gospel that anyone has actually called Jesus of Nazareth "God." What I really love about this story is that it shows us that it’s OK to doubt! In fact, I think doubt is essential for the growth of faith. When I was a little girl, my parents took me to Sunday school and church each week. I was taught Bible stories and songs and what to believe about Jesus and God and other issues of faith. Then as an adult I was faced with the challenge of completing the following sentences: I believe God is …; I believe Jesus is …; I believe the Holy Spirit is …; I believe sin is …. A year later I looked at what I had written and it struck me that I had written the Sunday school answers I had been taught as a child – the things my teachers, parents, and grandparents had taught me to believe. It was then that I began to doubt - to question - to search for what I truly believe. I didn’t have to give up all that I had been taught, but I had to question things and make it my faith – not just what others believed. Thomas had to make his own personal connection with Jesus for himself – Mary couldn’t do it for him – the disciples couldn’t do it for him. Thomas had to do it, and we have to do it for ourselves – WE have to experience Jesus personally. The story of Thomas says it is okay to ask the tough questions – questions like: Why do good people have to suffer? Is there really a heaven and hell? Does God really answer prayers? Faith is not a one shot deal – it comes anew with each new experience – each new question that is asked. Things that are alive are always growing. When things die, they stop growing. If our faith is alive, it should always be growing, too, – and that happens when we doubt and question in a community of faith – just like Thomas in today’s gospel story. Last Wednesday evening we started the Via Media program here at St. John’s. Session One was called An Anglican Way of Being Christian. One person in the video said, "Doubt is not the opposite of faith; fear is." Jesus came to Thomas in his doubt and Thomas believed. I believe that Jesus comes to all of us where we are in our faith journey – in our doubts – in our questions – in our unquestionable faith – wherever we are, the risen Christ comes to us. In the coming weeks the Via Media program will give us an opportunity to ask questions and discuss our beliefs about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, the Bible, Sin, and the Kingdom of God. I’m absolutely sure there’s not a better place to search for these answers than with our faith community at St. John’s. As Christians we believe that somehow the world was changed at the moment of Jesus’ resurrection – that Christ has the upper hand and not chaos. Even though we might sometimes be somewhat skeptical and have doubts and questions, we have our hope in the power of the resurrection that keeps us coming back to church week after week. Whenever we have doubts or questions and we still show up at St. John’s, our faith has grown. Whenever we see chaos and madness in the world, like tsunami’s, earthquakes, people killing other people, children dying, and we come back to St. John’s, our faith has grown. Whenever we experience an unexplainable death or loss of any kind or we experience suffering and still come back to St. John’s, we are living in the hope of the resurrection and the hope of a better world, and our faith has grown. Our faith is not our own – it is a gift from God. We should always remember to pray for the faith of Thomas so we, too, can proclaim, "My Lord and my God!" Amen. Jane Brubaker - Aspirant (Temporarily assigned to St. John's)
|
