Second Sunday in Easter

April 19, 2009

Homily for the Anglican Usage Mass

of the

St. Thomas More Society

celebrated at

St. Anthony of Padua Roman Catholic Church, 1013 Wood Street

Scranton, PA

John 20:19-21

            In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.  Amen

            Another survey came out this past week that demonstrated that many Catholics do not, in fact, believe what the Church teaches.  It found, for example, that a large number of American Catholics are not committed to the all-male priesthood, something that successive popes have said will not and cannot ever be changed.  On top of this survey, one of the world’s most well-known Catholic laymen, Britain’s former Prime Minister Tony Blair, said last week that the Church needs to change its teaching that since a homosexual orientation tends toward the commission of grave sin, it is intrinsically disordered.  That is not going to happen, either—no change will come—but the way the story was covered in the media demonstrated that a lot of Catholics agree with what Mr. Blair said.  I tell you these things not to discourage you, but to remind you that there are doubters among is still.

            Doubters have been members of Christ’s Body, the Church, since the very beginning, as today’s Gospel demonstrates.  Thomas said that he refused to believe until he received more evidence.  Specifically, he wanted to place his hand in the mark of the nails.  On the verge of breaking communion with his best friends and fellow apostles in the propagation of the Gospel, the other disciples did not reject him.  In fact, how the other apostles treated him is a lesson for us in how we ought to treat the doubters among us.  How do we treat those who refuse to believe what the successors to the apostles teach?  How do we treat modern day doubting Thomases?

            It is clear that the disciples did not expel Thomas from their company.  The refusal to believe came first, and only after Thomas’s brash pronouncement, did Jesus appear to them all again and challenge Thomas in his doubt.  So we know right off the bat that we are not to treat such doubters today with disdain or contempt.  If the apostles could continue to welcome Thomas into their fellowship as he struggled to come to grips with the truth, so must we welcome into our presence those whose convictions are weaker than are ours.

            Please note that what I am advocating here is not the spread of error.  This must be actively opposed in every instance.  Rather I am, on this Divine Mercy Sunday, appealing for mercy on those who do not yet believe all that the Church teaches.  Thomas, in his error, continued to enter into fellowship with the Apostles, and they were merciful.  So we must show mercy to those who continue to come to Mass yet who do not fully believe.

            And the way we show mercy is by following the program Jesus set out when He saw Thomas the first time after His resurrection from the dead.  Jesus pointed to what helped Thomas overcome his doubt.  Jesus pointed to His wounds, the marks of His sacrifice, and even went so far as to invite Thomas to touch them.  He upbraids Thomas only slightly, even as He reminds this doubting apostle of the death he died for our salvation.

            This, then, is what we are to point to.  Just as Jesus pointed to His own wounds in helping Thomas to overcome doubt, so we point to the sacrifices of the faithful to help our doubting neighbors leave behind their own reservations.  As we try to convince the wavering members of the Church of the truth of the Gospel, we must remind them of the mercy shown to the world through the love of Christ.     

            As we consider which sacrifices we might point to, recall that Jesus pointed to himself. Thus, we know that in all we do we must make it clear that our sacrifices are simply a reflection of the love Jesus showed us first.  It may even be helpful to point to a sacrifice we ourselves have made, especially if we have been called to serve the doubting Thomas through the service of leadership.

            For example, there is no harm in a parent occasionally pointing out to his disbelieving children those sacrifices he makes because of his love for Jesus and the offspring with which our Lord has blessed him.  An officer in the Army must necessarily do the same thing in order to get his men to follow him into combat.  So long as the sacrifice is expressed in love, with no overbearing attitude or resentment, pointing to one’s own sacrifice in a leader/follower relationship can be helpful, if trust already has been established.

            Trust is not always there, however, so we must consider another approach.  One must still point to the wounds of Jesus, but those wounds can well be found in many third parties.  A professor of mine at seminary pointed to the Ugandan martyrs as a sign to our modern age, as they chose death rather than submit to the immoral advances of their king.  In them we see the importance of sexual purity, a virtue not well respected today, but one these young men were willing to give their lives to uphold.

            Our brothers in the faith have chosen a patron saint, no doubt, as well.  Take the time to learn about the virtues they found admirable and point out the sacrifices that their own patron made in service to the truth.  Remind them through an example they can relate to of the boundless love the saints have for the Church and how that love is the very love Jesus showed us on Calvary’s Hill.

            This merciful approach takes into account what is best for the individual who is struggling.  We might feel more comfortable not having any of these doubters around to disturb the unity in the faith that we so cherish.  But our comfort is not the point of the Gospel—the salvation of souls is the great mission entrusted to us, a mission for which millions have suffered.  The least we can do is continue to welcome into our midst those who have yet to experience the joy we have known.

            We must also remember that mercy issues in conversion.  Thomas did not end his journey a doubter, but the founder of the Church in India.  His words to our Savior finally were, “My Lord and my God.”  If we do not continue to show mercy to the doubters in our midst, we cannot expect to see the dramatic conversions that we witnessed in today’s Gospel.  We must be confident that the mercy we show eventually will issue in conviction on the part of the former skeptic, or a new Catholic of conviction finally will be free to love as Jesus did—not withholding consent, but laying down his life that others might live.