The Resurrection is Physical
We are all Thomas when we say we will not believe without physical (empirical) evidence.
This coming Sunday, the Revised Common Lectionary prescribes John 20:19-31, where Thomas famously gets hed the empty tomb, Jesus appeared to the disciples who had gone into hiding. Jesus appeared to the disciples (not even the best-locked door can keep Jesus out), but Thomas, the doubter, was not present. Thomas is told that he missed the resurrection appearance and famously said, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.”
That is how we ended up with “Doubting Thomas.”
I have always felt bad for Thomas.
Thomas is an easy target of preachers and Sunday school teachers looking to distract from their own doubts and questions. In her book Help My Unbelief, Rev. Fleming Rutledge writes, “The gospel announcement, though it is made with boldness, is not handed down directly from on high, untouched by human imperfection. The preacher must struggle in the pulpit.” The issue, though, is that many do not want to hear the struggles of the preacher from the pulpit. Many who sit on uncomfortable church pews want to find comfort in what could be perceived as the “perfect faith” of the preacher. This is why there was quite an uproar when the President of Union Theological Seminary questioned the resurrection in a New York Times interview.
The truth is that doubting Thomas is all about us - you. me, your pastor, and even the fondest Sunday school teacher from your childhood.
We all have our doubts.
We all want physical proof.
We are all Thomas when we say we will not believe without physical (empirical) evidence. How many had their fingers crossed last Easter Sunday when the Apostles’ Creed was recited?
The Resurrection of Jesus Christ was physical. Fleming says that the Resurrection proclamation is not “wistful thoughts about the possibility of an afterlife; this is a day for Paul’s cry of triumph: ‘If Christ has not been raised, you are still in your sins; but in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. For as by a man came death, by a man has also come the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive!’”
In the fifty days following Christ's Resurrection, those who needed their physical proof received it. The disciples touched his wounds and shared meals with him.
Had the resurrection not occurred, we would have never heard of Jesus. He would have been just one of tens of thousands crucified by Rome.
We can search for physical proof today and find it in those who are gathered by Christ - the church, Christ’s body.
We can search for physical proof today and find it in the bread and wine of the Eucharist.
We can search for physical proof today and find it a Lord who still calls us by name (like Mary at Easter or the disciples from the nets) and invites us into the waters of baptism.
The resurrection of Jesus Christ stands as the ultimate affirmation of faith, transcending doubt and offering hope to all who seek it. Through the resurrection, we find assurance that Christ has conquered death, ushering in new life and redemption for all humanity.
Like Thomas, with our doubts with honesty and humility, seeking the presence of Christ in the midst of uncertainty, we find comfort in the knowledge that, ultimately, our faith rests not on empirical evidence alone but on the transformative power of the risen Christ, who continues to reveal himself to us in unexpected ways.
Beautiful!