Why we speak of doubt

Immediately after Easter and the joy of the risen Lord we have a reading on doubt and our famous protagonist in this arena Thomas (Jn 20.19-). Why do we need to speak about doubt so soon after the joy that is resplendent at Easter? Surely we should be looking at this either during Lent or at least halfway through the year when doubts arise sometime after the event. In reality this reading could be discussed at and on any Sunday of the year for the simple reality that in this day and age, in our secularity, the norm is a mindset based on doubt.

Just think about this a bit and you will begin to realise its truth. Our premise in life is to doubt our abilities up till, and even sometimes when, we are proven wrong. Our doubts are raised in all sorts of ways. I remember when I purchased my first house. I spent days doubting my ability to pay the mortgage on a single income, I doubted my ability to achieve the required loan, etc. This meant that I spent days worrying myself over the smallest detail and believing that everything would go wrong. We all do this in some form or another especially when it comes to our work lives. However, it spills over into our social and spiritual lives as well. Very few of us are ever without doubt at some point in our lives. Thomas exhibits only that which is natural within our humanity. I am certain that there is no one who is reading this who has never doubted either themselves or their abilities. It is natural and is portrayed in our greatest heroes or those whom we hold up to be great.

Impossibility ceases when there is hope not doubt

So, if doubt is a part of our lives, what is the big deal? Why should we worry about it or retell it in our scriptures? Perhaps simply to acknowledge that it is part of our lives as human beings and when we do doubt we do not allow it to be the pervading force in our lives. Doubt of ourselves as human beings leads us into the depravity of dependence on others and allowing others to guide our lives for both good and evil. We place ourselves in the position of slaves not in the position of those who are equal. Christ calls his disciples friends and loves them to the end, in doing so he elevates them to a place that is filled with hope. In casting himself as a servant to all he places the deliverance of ourselves from the road that doubt places us on. By his grace we are elevated into a place that is beyond doubt and yet...we will tend towards doubt as a default within our lives.

This is why this passage is placed here within our cycle of scripture no matter what year it is. Christ is risen and yet immediately we fall into the pattern of doubt, as shown by Thomas. Christ comes into the lives of the disciples as the risen Lord. Hope is present for death has been conquered there is no room for doubt as Thomas also clearly shows for in Christ there is new life; there is fresh hope in the midst of the greatest despair. Doubt is pushed away from our lives by the hope of a new life. Despair is allayed with Christ. We squander ourselves in doubt at every point in our journey. It is tiring when we do not allow ourselves the positive presence of the risen Lord because we are in a constant battle with our own internal doubts about our faith, about our work, about our life, about ..., about..., about... At what point does the Easter story become ours and is lived in our communities in the same way that it was lived in the communities of the risen Lord. It is not about a building, a place or a ritual; it is about a community gathered around in friendship and love that shares its common faith with those around us. Let us like Thomas stop doubting and celebrate 'My Lord, My God'.