Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle

“Put your finger here and see my hands…” – John 20:27

       A pilgrimage to the Holy Land. It was the trip of my life. I was all packed and excited to go. I just had one last thing to do — this OB checkup to clear me and the two-month-old baby in my womb for travel. The doctor came in and, after the pleasantries, got me ready for the ultrasound.

       She placed the instrument, and then there was silence. I had to raise my head to see the screen. “How’s everything, doc?”

I asked. She called another doctor in to examine the screen.

       “Mrs. Gogna,” she finally spoke, “you should be on your 10th week of pregnancy at this time, but the fetus seems to be the size of an eight-week-old.”

       It felt like I was stabbed in my chest. I gripped my husband’s hand and sobbed until my insides hurt. Over and over again, on our way home, in between wails and tears, I said, “Lord, I know You are here with me. I know this is the best. I choose to believe no matter how painful this is, You will see me through.”

       I chose to believe, not doubt. And in faith, I found the God of my healing. Lallaine Gogna (lallygogna@yahoo.com)

Reflection: What will you choose to do — doubt or trust? Your answer makes a world of difference.

Lord, help my unbelief. You are the God of my every moment. You will never let me go.

St. Thomas, Apostle, pray for us.

As we remember St. Thomas the Apostle, let us reflect on the fact that we cannot leave the work of the Church only to a few individuals, no matter how blessed or talented they may be. The commission to spread the Gospel is rooted in our baptism — something we all have received. The mystery of how the grace of God works differently in each individual is something we have to respect. Thus, we need to work with one another, so that our gifts are shared in the service of the Church’s mission.

19 Brothers and sisters: You are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the holy ones and members of the household of God, 20 built upon the foundation of the Apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the capstone. 21 Through him the whole structure is held together and grows into a temple sacred in the Lord; 22 in him you also are being built together into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

R: Go out to all the world and tell the Good News.

1 Praise the Lord, all you nations; glorify him, all you peoples! (R) 2 For steadfast is his kindness for us, and the fidelity of the Lord endures forever. (R)

Thomas takes a while to accept the resurrection of Jesus. Can we blame him? None of us have responded to the Gospel in a perfect way. We have had our doubts at one point or another. What matters is that Thomas believed and continued to follow God’s will for his life.

You believe in me, Thomas, because you have seen me, says the Lord; blessed are those who have not seen, but still believe!

24 Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” But Thomas said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nail-marks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” 26 Now a week later his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe.” 28 Thomas answered and said to him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 Jesus said to him, “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”

think: We cannot leave the work of the Church to a few individuals only, no matter how blessed or talented they may be.

READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR 2 Chronicles 13-14

TO BELIEVE IS TO SEE

We celebrate today the feast of St. Thomas, the Apostle, one of the pillars of the Church. Having been chosen by Jesus as one of His Apostles, he deserves to be honored.

    But the focus of the Gospel was not really Thomas; he is a representation of each one of us. We are all doubters in varying degrees. We are skeptic of the things we do not see, hear, touch or smell. We always operate through our senses. That is our basic and initial reaction. In fairness to Thomas, even the other disciples did not understand what Jesus said about His resurrection.

       The point of the Gospel of John is actually faith. Faith is to believe in things not seen, heard, touched or felt. Jesus stressed, “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.” Of course we need signs to believe; we do not believe out of nothing. God gives us the grace to believe. Our senses still have their uses. They provide us with reasons to make that leap of faith.

       I like the Filipino word “basta.”We say it whenever we are confronted with a question which we could not clearly explain but we know exists or is true. Children usually take that for an answer because they trust and believe us. In a way, that is faith. When we go before the Lord, there are a lot in life we do not understand. His ways are not our ways. But because, in our experience, He has proven Himself every time, we entrust ourselves to Him.

       In science, we say, “To see is to believe.” In faith, the reverse is true, “To believe is to see.” Thomas believed when he felt the wounds of Jesus. But He saw more when He finally believed. “My Lord and my God!” is a profession of faith. We are encouraged to exclaim it like Thomas when the priest presents the consecrated host before we receive it. In essence we are saying, “I believe You are present here and now, Lord. Help my unbelief for me to see Your glory!” Fr. Benny Tuazon

REFLECTION QUESTION: What will help you believe more in God?

Lord, increase my faith. Help me to entrust my whole life to You.