Doubt is a perennial reality of the Christian life and in today’s Gospel we see that it has been so since the very beginning. My grandmother used to say that “a little doubt is good for the soul”.When I experience doubt, it means that I am really engaging in and wrestling with the Christian mystery.
I think that Thomas gets a bit of a bad rap because we forget that Thomas is one of the very first human beings to ever hear of the resurrection of Christ. Imagine what it must have been like for the disciples. They had pinned all of their hopes on this man Jesus and then they saw him executed by the Romans. All their hopes hung on that cross and seemed to die with him. Then, in the midst of their trembling and fear, Jesus appears to them and imparts to them “his peace” -- the peace of the Risen Christ!
And then he breaths on them and gives them the gift of the Holy Spirit. This gift was to embolden them as he sent them out into the world to proclaim the Good News that death had been defeated, our sins were forgiven and even though our bodies die, we will live forever!
The peace of Christ is at the center of Christian life and of the Easter story. This peace is like no other peace. It is Christ’s peace. It is a transformative peace that flows forth from the Risen One...directly from God to us.
In this Easter season let us open our hearts and minds to the presence of the Holy Spirit who is calling us and emboldening us to proclaim the peace of Christ to all the world. And let us pray, may this “peace of the Risen Christ” settle upon Ukraine and all places of war and suffering.
Have I accepted Christ’s peace in my own life? How can I show forth Christ’s peace in my daily life...how can I share it with the world around me?
May the peace of the Risen One be with you always,
Fr. Tim
I think that Thomas gets a bit of a bad rap because we forget that Thomas is one of the very first human beings to ever hear of the resurrection of Christ. Imagine what it must have been like for the disciples. They had pinned all of their hopes on this man Jesus and then they saw him executed by the Romans. All their hopes hung on that cross and seemed to die with him. Then, in the midst of their trembling and fear, Jesus appears to them and imparts to them “his peace” -- the peace of the Risen Christ!
And then he breaths on them and gives them the gift of the Holy Spirit. This gift was to embolden them as he sent them out into the world to proclaim the Good News that death had been defeated, our sins were forgiven and even though our bodies die, we will live forever!
The peace of Christ is at the center of Christian life and of the Easter story. This peace is like no other peace. It is Christ’s peace. It is a transformative peace that flows forth from the Risen One...directly from God to us.
In this Easter season let us open our hearts and minds to the presence of the Holy Spirit who is calling us and emboldening us to proclaim the peace of Christ to all the world. And let us pray, may this “peace of the Risen Christ” settle upon Ukraine and all places of war and suffering.
Have I accepted Christ’s peace in my own life? How can I show forth Christ’s peace in my daily life...how can I share it with the world around me?
May the peace of the Risen One be with you always,
Fr. Tim
RSS Feed
