Words Made Flesh: Mercy Flows From the Wound in His Heart

"'Doubting Thomas' is a term often used to describe someone who refuses to believe something without direct, personal evidence; a skeptic.

"It refers, of course, to Thomas, one of the Twelve Apostles, whose name occurs in all the Gospel lists of the apostles....

"When Jesus announced his intention of returning to Judea to visit Lazarus, Thomas said to his fellow disciples: 'Let us also go, that we may die with him' (John 11:16). It was Thomas who, during the great discourse after the Last Supper, raised an objection: 'Lord, we do not know where you are going; and how can we know the way?' (John 14:5).

"Little else is recorded of Thomas the Apostle in the New Testament; nevertheless, thanks to John's Gospel text for today (John 20:19-31), his personality is clearer to us than that of some others of the Twelve.

"...That Easter evening when the Lord appeared to the disciples, Thomas was not present. When he was told that Jesus was alive and had shown himself, Thomas stated: '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' (John 20:25).

"Eight days later, Thomas made his act of faith, drawing down the rebuke of Jesus -- 'Because you have seen me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.'

"The real Thomas

"Thomas the Apostle is one of the ... most honest of the lovers of Jesus, not the eternal skeptic, nor the bullish, stubborn personality that Christian tradition has often painted. This young apostle stood before the cross, not comprehending the horrors of what had happened. All his dreams and hopes were hanging on that cross.

"Thomas rediscovered his faith amidst the believing community of apostles and disciples. This point must never be forgotten, especially in an age when so many claim that faith and spirituality are attainable without the experience of the ecclesial community. We do not believe as isolated individuals....
 

"Let us not forget the Catechism of the Catholic Church: 'Faith is ... not an isolated act. No one can believe alone, just as no one can live alone. You have not given yourself faith as you have not given yourself life. The believer has received faith from others and should hand it on to others.

"'Our love for Jesus and for our neighbor impels us to speak to others about our faith. Each believer is thus a link in the great chain of believers. I cannot believe without being carried by the faith of others, and by my faith I help support others in the faith' (CCC No. 166)."

Reprinted from "A Wave of Mercy Flows From the Wound in His Heart," Biblical Reflection for Divine Mercy Sunday, by Father Thomas Rosica, CSB, President of Canada's Salt and Light Television. To access all Fr. Rosica's reflections in Zenit on this past week's Sunday readings and on the Beatification of Pope John Paul II, click here.

Fr. Thomas Rosica, CSB is CEO of the Salt and Light Catholic Media Foundation and Television Network in Canada. He is a consultor to the Pontifical Council for Social Communications and writes a weekly commentary on the Sunday readings for Zenit.

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