2nd Sunday after Resurrection, Homily of His Excellency Msgr. Selim Sfeir Maronite Archbishop of Cyprus
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
Jesus rose from the dead, yes, and appeared to the gathered disciples, but not to all of them, for Thomas was not with them. When the ten disciples informed Thomas of Jesus' appearance, he did not believe, but said, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands, put my finger in the wounds left by the nails, and put my hand into his side, I won’t believe.” (John 20:25).
Thomas wrestled with his faith for a whole week, until the new Sunday came. What confirms to us that he was in internal conflict with his faith is that he was with the disciples and did not abandon them, and did not abandon the reunited Church. Jesus appeared to them again, addressed Thomas directly with the rebuke of love and not the love of rebuke, and said to him, “Put your finger here. Look at my hands. Put your hand into my side. No more disbelief. Believe!” (John 20:27)
None of the disciples had informed Jesus of Thomas' position or his response, but Jesus, present in Thomas' life, knows his most precise details and wants to heal him of his doubts.
Often we fall into great moments of doubt, where we lose our faith; we feel that God is far from us, and our eyes no longer see him despite his presence and silent protection over us. God's will is not that we remain in doubt; it is not his desire that we live in unbelief, but he leaves us a margin to return to ourselves, to constructive internal struggle, and then he reveals himself to us!
“Put forth your finger here, and see my hands; also put forth your hand, and put it into my side.” With this phrase, Jesus addresses us today as if he were saying to each of us, “I know your doubts, I understand your worries, if you want to believe in me, don't walk away, put your finger forward and touch me, and don't grope with the spirit of the world to come to faith. Open your eyes to my wounds, and do not focus on your wounds, for in my wounds you will find your healing!”
The world cannot lead you to Jesus because it does not know him, “He was in the world, and the world was made through him, and the world did not know him” (John 1:10), because the world cannot understand God through human logic. Jesus says: “The one who is from the earth belongs to the earth and speaks as one from the earth.“ (John 3:31) As for the apostle Paul, he tells us, ‘In God’s wisdom, he determined that the world wouldn’t come to know him through its wisdom. Instead, God was pleased to save those who believe through the foolishness of preaching.’ (1 Corinthians 1:21)
Jesus addresses Thomas with a phrase whose echoes still shake us, “Do not be unbelieving, but believe.” Just as he wanted Thomas to believe in him, he wants us to believe in him, but the path of faith he charts requires us to come close to him, to put our hands in his, through personal experience that the mind cannot comprehend, and to look at the wounds in his hands and see the marks of the nails.
Seeing these wounds leads our hearts to believe in the love that gave itself on the cross. And touching the nail marks opens our eyes to see what the world cannot. “Soon the world will no longer see me, but you will see me. Because I live, you will live too.” (John 14:19) So only do we say with Thomas to Jesus, “My Lord and my God!”
Amen.
† Selim Sfeir
Maronite Archbishop of Cyprus