2nd Sunday Easter 2008

I’m sure that you have met people like Thomas, the apostle, on many occasions. They are people who don’t like to get taken in, people who don’t like to be lied to. They say: “I refuse to believe unless I see with my own eyes, unless I can touch with my own hands” – those words have been repeated over and over again. many of us have heard those words and met that person. Many of us have met that intelligent person who refuses to believe. Many of us have met that person who has been deeply hurt in their life and cannot believe that if God exists that they care for them. Many of is have met the person who stops believing because they believe that God is not listening. Many of us have met the young person who has thrown everything away, who doesn’t even get started and says they don’t believe. There are people who have never believed, people who have once believed but no longer believe, people who say they believe but don’t really. Each of them say with Thomas, unless I see with my own eyes and hear with my own ears, I refuse to believe.

Belief in actual fact is a basic tenant of living, we couldn’t exist if we didn’t believe. We get on a bus, we believe the driver knows how to drive the bus. We get on an aeroplane we believe that the pilot knows how to fly the plane. We go to the shops we believe that there will be enough food for us. We switch a switch on in the house and we believe the light will go. We turn on the gas fire and we believe that there will be gas to heat the house. We turn the tap on and we believe that water will come out. We go out of the house and we believe that we will return and everything will be alright. We believe that people love us and care for us.

You cannot function if you do not believe. If you stopped believing you would seize up, stop doing things, always question, you would be reduced to a quivering wreck. You would be that kind of person who was afraid of their shadow. Too afraid to do anything because you couldn’t believe, you couldn’t trust anyone.

To be fair to him, Thomas is not quite that person. He is not a complete sceptic. He will only believe if he has enough evidence to convince him. He will only believe if he sees the Lord and touches the wounds. He doesn’t want to be made a fool. He doesn’t want to be taken in. He doesn’t want to believe just anything that people tell him. In the end, he gets that evidence that he is looking for he sees the risen Christ and touches his wounds. He wants to know its truly him and no one else.

If you speak to people who cannot believe, then they are also looking for that sign, for that information, for those answer to their questions. But the strange thing often that happens is the more answers you get the more you want; the more signs you get the more signs you want, the more information you get the more you want. You could have all of this and still not believe.

Two people going out with one another. At one level they need signs that they care for each other but at a deeper level they simply believe that they love each other. People who have been married for a long time don’t need to be told that they love each other they believe it and know it.

Is it not true for us to who have come along way in our faith. We do not need to see things or hear things. We know them and believe them in our heart. We know that God loves us. We know that he has come from the tomb and given us a new life. There is knowing and believing, the belief is strong in us.

And because that belief is strong within us we can step out and believe and trust. We will have the same amount of trouble as anyone else but we believe and trust that God is with us. We bleed when we are cut like anyone else but our belief changes things. We have our sorrow like anyone else but our belief changes things. We have our uncertainties but we have our beliefs.

Some people would like to say that belief makes you weak but we know belief makes us strong. top Comment on this Homily