The Feast of St. Thomas

Today is the Feast of St. Thomas. We don't know much about St. Thomas' ministry after the 'doubting Thomas' episode in the Bible except that tradition says he went east to India. In fact the Indian Christians in Kerala have called themselves "St. Thomas Christians" for centuries. Our own priest, Father Mathew, and his family are from Kerala originally, so thank you St. Thomas!

I was reading about St. Thomas today and want to share something that I found profound. We know that when Christ was sentenced to death for claiming to be the King of the Jews, His followers thought that it was the end. When He died on the cross, they despaired. Then, the women saw Jesus on Sunday morning at the empty tomb. St. Thomas was not in the upper room with the other apostles when the risen Christ appeared for the first time. Why? I've heard homilies that suggested Thomas was out getting groceries or running some practical errand.

There is no question that Thomas loved the Lord. We see his love in the Gospels, but it is curious that Thomas was not with the other apostles. Thomas doubted their claim that they had seen Jesus. Possibly, after Jesus' death, in Tomas' despair, he made the mistake of withdrawing from the other apostles. He chose loneliness over the comfort of friends in his sadness and pain. When they tried to tell him that they had seen Jesus, Thomas refused to be comforted. He refused to believe. This idea really struck me because I have felt this way before; like withdrawing when I'm grieving or depressed. Don't we all feel like doing this? It's certainly easier for the devil to attack us when we are alone. He will tell you that the others don't understand and they will not support you. He wants us to be alone, to feel left out, abandoned and suffering. I'm sure St. Thomas felt all of these things. Plus, the secondary emotion here is anger.

The next time Jesus appeared, Thomas was with the apostles. Thank goodness he did not keep himself isolated. He saw Jesus and believed. He was the first person to call Jesus, "God"! When you are tempted to separate yourself from the people that love and support you, don't. We are made for communion; to be in union with each other as the Body of Christ. Even though you don't feel like it, make the effort to be with others.

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