വി. തോമാശ്ളീഹാ

ദുക്റാന തിരുനാൾ (July 3 Wed, 2024) (Dukhrana of St. Thomas, the Apostle)

Important feast day and a day of obligation.

Gen 2:8-17 God put the man whom he had formed in Eden Prov 4: 10-18 Keep hold of instruction, for she is your life

Eph 2: 19-22 The household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets

Jn 20:24-29 “My Lord and my God”: Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he 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.” 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.” 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.” Thomas answered and said to him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”

Homily starter anecdote: Another Thomas: St. Thomas Aquinas lived in the thirteenth century. He is considered a giant of the faith who attempted a systematic explanation of theology in his “Summa Theologica.” Let us take comfort in the testimony of these two Thomases. Thomas the Apostle walked with Jesus in his public ministry and he still doubted. But the Lord came to strengthen his faith. St. Thomas Aquinas labored for years on his work for the Lord, and after one mystical experience, one touch of Christ realized that his great labor paled in comparison with “my Lord and my God!” profession of faith by St. Thomas the Apostle. Let us strive to live faith while trusting that the Lord will present himself when, where, and as he wants. He knows the best timing for our soul.

The context: Today we celebrate the feast of St. Thomas, the Apostle. Today’s Gospel passage (Jn 20:24-29) presents the fearless apostle St. Thomas, in his uncompromising honesty, demanding a personal vision of, and physical contact with, the risen Jesus as a condition for his belief. Thomas had not been with the disciples when Jesus first appeared to them in the Upper Room. As a result, he refused to believe. The following week, Jesus appeared to the apostles in the still-locked Upper Room, and Thomas was with them. Jesus said, “Put your finger here, and see My hands; and put out your hand, and place it in My side; do not be faithless, but believing!” Thomas obeyed and, believing, cried out, “My Lord and my God!”. Jesus responded, “You have believed because you have seen Me. Blessed are those who have not seen but have believed.” Thomas was able to overcome his doubts by seeing and touching the risen Jesus. In this passage, Jesus proved that he will do whatever it takes to help us overcome our doubts. Doubts are a normal part of being human, but also an open door to something more for those who strive to reach out and put their finger into Jesus’s open wounds

The unique profession of Faith made by the “doubting” Thomas, “My Lord and My God!” is highly significant for two reasons. 1) It is the foundation of our Christian Faith. For our Faith is based on the Divinity of Jesus as demonstrated by Divine miracles, especially by the supreme miracle of the Resurrection from the dead. Thomas’ profession of Faith is the strongest evidence we have for the Resurrection of Jesus. 2) Thomas’ Faith culminated in his self-surrender to Jesus, his heroic missionary expedition to India in A.D. 52, his fearless preaching, and the powerful testimony given by his martyrdom in AD 72.

Why was Thomas absent from this encounter with our Lord? Probably, he was the only brave one among the Apostles to go out and check the reactions of the Jews about the news of a risen Jesus. Perhaps it was by divine providence, in that God wanted Thomas to set an example for us. The example Thomas set was that we must humbly rejoice in the blessings others receive when we are not also the recipient. If Thomas were there, then it would have been easier for him to share in the joy. But, in many ways, Thomas’ absence provided him an even greater opportunity that he failed to embrace. The gentle rebuke Thomas received from Jesus was an act of love, in that Jesus wanted Thomas to ponder the reason for his unbelief. Jesus clearly wanted Thomas to examine the unbelief caused by envy, which appears to have led to an intentional lack of faith. There is a “doubting Thomas” in each of us. It is but normal that in our life of faith we oftentimes seek confirmation from the Lord, even through our bodily faculties. We like to see, hear, touch, even taste and smell the presence and the goodness of the Lord especially in our “down moments”.

Life messages: 1) Faith culminating in self-surrender to God leads us to the service of our fellow-human beings. Living Faith enables us to see the risen Lord in everyone and gives us the willingness to render each one loving service: “Faith without good works is dead” (Jas 2:17). Mother Teresa presents it this way: “If we pray, we will believe; if we believe, we will love; if we love, we will serve. Only then we put our love of God into action.” It was his Faith in the Lord and obedience to Jesus' missionary command that prompted St. Thomas to travel to India to preach the Gospel among the Hindus, to establish seven Christian communities (known later as “St. Thomas Christians”), and eventually to endure martyrdom.

2) We need to grow in the living, dynamic Faith of St. Thomas using the following means prescribed by the Spiritual Fathers: a) We come to know and experience Jesus personally and intimately by the daily and meditative reading of the Bible. b) We strengthen our Faith by the power of the Holy Spirit through personal and community prayer. c) We share in the Divine Life of Jesus by frequenting the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. d) We are reconciled with God on a daily basis by repenting of our sins and asking God’s forgiveness and by receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation whenever we fall into a grave sin

Traditional belief of St. Thomas Christians of India about the mission of St. Thomas and his martyrdom: An early third century Syriac work known as the Acts of Thomas connects the apostle’s Indian ministry with two kings, one in the north and the other in the south. According to one of the legends in the Acts, Thomas was at first reluctant to accept the mission, but the Lord appeared to him in a night vision and said, “Fear not, Thomas. Go away to India and proclaim the Word. My grace shall be with you.” But the Apostle sill demurred, so the Lord overruled the stubborn disciple by ordering circumstances so compelling that he was forced to accompany an “Indian” merchant, Abbanes, as a slave to his native place in northwest “India”, where he found himself in the service of the Indo-Parthian king, Gondophares. According to the Acts of Thomas, the apostle’s ministry resulted in many conversions throughout the kingdom, including the king and his brother.

Remains of his buildings, influenced by Greek architecture, indicate that he was a great builder. According to the legend, Thomas was a skilled carpenter and was bidden to build a palace for the king. However, the Apostle decided to teach the king a lesson by devoting the royal grant to acts of charity and thereby laying up treasure for the heavenly abode. (…)

The Acts of Thomas identifies his second mission in India with a kingdom ruled by King Mahadwa, one of the rulers of a first-century dynasty in southern India. It is most significant that, aside from a small remnant of the Church of the East in Kurdistan, the only other church to maintain a distinctive identity is the Saint Thomas Christian congregation along the Malabar Coast of Kerala State in southwest India. According to the most ancient tradition of this church, Thomas evangelized this area and then crossed to the Coromandel Coast of southeast India, where, after carrying out a second mission, he died near Madras (= Chennai). (…)

He reputedly preached to all classes of people and had about 17,000 converts, including members of the four principal castes. Later, stone crosses were erected at the places where churches were founded, and they became pilgrimage centers. In accordance with apostolic custom, Thomas ordained teachers and leaders or elders, who were reported to be the earliest ministers of the Malabar church. (…)

Saint Thomas was martyred in India in 72 A.D., attaining martyrdom at Saint Thomas Mount near Mylapore (part of Chennai, capital of Tamil Nadu). He was buried on the site of Chennai’s Saint Thomas Basilica in the Diocese of Saint Thomas of Mylapore. The tradition is that Thomas, having aroused the hostility of the local priests by making converts, fled to Saint Thomas’ Mount four miles (6 km) southwest of Mylapore. He was supposedly followed by his persecutors, who transfixed him with a lance as he prayed kneeling on a stone. His body was brought to Mylapore and buried inside the church he had built. The present Basilica is on this spot. It was first built in the 16th century and rebuilt in the 19th.

Few relics are still kept in the church at Mylapore, Tamil Nadu, India. According to tradition, in 232 A.D., the greater part of relics of the Apostle Thomas are said to have been sent by an Indian king and brought from India to the city of Edessa (Mesopotamia) on which occasion the Syriac Acts of Thomas were written. On 27 September 2006, Pope Benedict recalled that “an ancient tradition claims that Thomas first evangelized Syria and Persia, then went on to Western India, from where also he finally reached southern India.”

(Prepared by: Fr. Anthony Kadavil, Chaplain, Sacred Heart Residence of the Little Sisters of the Poor, 1655 McGill Ave, Mobile, AL 36604, USA)