Homily | July 3, 2026 | Jesus Returns For The Disciple Who Struggles | (Episode 184)

There's probably no apostle who has suffered from a worse nickname than Saint Thomas.

We don't call Peter Peter the denier, we don't call Matthew, Matthew the tax collector, we don't call Paul the persecutor, but for two thousand years we have called him doubting Thomas.

I think we've been a little unfair because if you read the Gospels carefully, Thomas was much more than a doubter.

In fact, he had been one of the bravest men among the twelve.

Earlier in John's gospel, when Jesus decides to return to Judea after Lazarus had died, the other disciples know exactly what awaits them.

The religious leaders are looking for Jesus.

Going back could mean death.

Who is the disciple who says, Let us also go that we may die with him?

Oh that was Thomas.

Doesn't sound like a coward.

Later at the Last Supper, when Jesus says, You know the way where I am going.

Thomas is the one willing to admit that everyone else is probably what everyone else is probably thinking.

Lord, we don't know where you're going.

How can we know the way?

Why?

Because Thomas is honest.

He refuses to pretend, he refuses to fake understanding.

He wants truth.

He's hanging on every word that Jesus is saying and wants to comprehend it.

Now, if we go to the gospel for today, the resurrection has happened.

Jesus has appeared to the other apostles, but Thomas was absent.

We're not told why.

Perhaps he was grieving, perhaps he wanted to be alone, he was out for a walk.

Perhaps the cross had shattered every hope he possessed.

Whatever the reason, he missed the appearance of the risen Lord.

So when the others tell him, We have seen the Lord, he responds with the words that have echoed through all of history.

Well, unless I see, I will not believe.

Many people stop reading there.

But notice what Jesus does.

He does not reject Thomas, he does not shame him, he does not say, You've had your chance.

Instead, eight days later, Jesus comes back.

One apostle is missing from the certainty of faith, and Jesus returns just for him.

That tells us something beautiful about the heart of Christ.

He pursues those who struggle, he seeks those who wrestle.

He never abandons the sincere seeker.

And Jesus invites Thomas.

Put your finger here.

Bring your hand into my side.

Did Thomas actually touch the wounds?

John never says if he does or doesn't.

Perhaps he didn't have to.

Perhaps simply seeing the risen Christ was enough.

Then Thomas makes the greatest profession of faith found anywhere in the Gospels.

My Lord and my God.

Notice what he does not say, my teacher, my rabbi, my friend.

He calls Jesus exactly who he is, God.

The doubter becomes one of the clearest witnesses to the divinity of Christ.

Church tradition tells us that Thomas did not remain in Jerusalem.

He became a missionary.

He traveled further than any other apostle, journeying through Persia and eventually landing in India.

Even today there are ancient Christian communities on the southwest coast of India that proudly trace their origins to the preaching of St.

Thomas.

They are known as the Christians of Saint Thomas, a living reminder that the gospel reached India in the first century through his missionary zeal.

There, according to the constant tradition of the church, he died a martyr, pierced by a spear because he refused to stop preaching Christ.

The man remembered for doubting ultimately gave his life for the one he had once questioned.

The first reading today reminds us that the church is built upon the foundation of the apostles.

Notice that God did not build his church on perfect men, he built it on forgiven men, on Peter who denied him, on Matthew, who had exploited his own people, on Paul who had persecuted fiercely Christians, on Thomas who struggled to believe.

That should give every single one of us tremendous hope.

Because God is not looking for perfect people.

Thomas had questions, but he came coming back.

He stayed with the apostles.

He remained within the church.

And because he remained, he encountered the risen Christ.

That's a huge lesson for us.

There may be moments when we do not understand, moments when we struggle, moments when our faith is tested by suffering, loss, or unanswered prayers.

When those moments come, do not walk away from Christ.

Do what Thomas eventually did.

Bring your questions into the presence of Jesus.

Stay close to the church.

Remain with a community of believers.

Struggle through it.

Because if you keep seeking him, the day will come when your hearts will echo the exact same words that Saint Thomas, not simply with your lips, but with your heart.

My Lord and my God.

Amen.