On the first Easter Sunday, Jesus appeared to the disciples, St. John tells us that Jesus came upon them without using the doors. His body already glorified, Jesus was no longer bound by material laws. Yet, he greets the disciples in a familiar way and they are not only convinced that they have met with Jesus, they are restored in their friendship with him. Their hearts are forever changed.
That is, all except Thomas. Thomas, for reasons which are not explained, was not with the other disciples. Perhaps he had an errand. Perhaps, given his later attitude, Thomas was struggling with Jesus’s death in his own way.
We can get a slightly bigger picture when we compare the accounts of Jesus’s appearance in Matthew, Mark, and John. When Jesus visited the disciples, he gave them directions to go directly to Galilee. But the disciples don’t leave for 8 days. Why? What were they doing? Were they looking for Thomas? Did they wait to leave until they found their friend?
The disciples, having encountered Jesus, go find their friend to share their joy. They tell him what they saw, what Jesus said. But Thomas is so immersed in his grief, that he cannot believe the words of his friends, no matter how joyfully they are delivered. Thomas responds, “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.” Thomas is so caught up in the tragedy of Good Friday, that he is unable to step into the joy of Easter Sunday.
But the disciples don’t abandon Thomas. They don’t go to Jesus without him. They can’t talk him into believing, but they do convince Thomas to come with them. In spite of the darkness in which he is trapped, a darkness which is marked by his unbelief, his friends don’t give up on him. They don’t enter into his darkness, but they accompany him. They stay with him. They rearrange their travel plans to include him.
What a model this is for friendship! Each of us has times where we are caught up in our own thoughts and doubts and we need those friends who will stay with us and accompany us back to the light. For those of us who have encountered Jesus in our lives, who have experienced the conversion of heart that happens when you meet Jesus, how can we reach out to those still caught in the darkness? We can’t talk them out of it, but we can accompany them.
It reminds me of my all time favorite praise song from the band, Full Armor. “Lead me to the light, show me to the truth and I’ll show it back to you when you need me to.” Because, isn’t that what faithful friends do?
El primer Domingo de Pascua, Jesús se apareció a los discípulos, San Juan nos dice que Jesús se les acercó sin entrar por la puerta. En Su cuerpo glorificado, Jesús ya no estaba sujeto a las leyes materiales. Sin embargo, saluda a los discípulos de manera familiar y ellos no sólo están convencidos de que se han encontrado con Jesús, sino que se restauran en su amistad con él. Sus corazones cambiaron para siempre.
Es decir, todos menos Thomas. Tomás, por razones que no se explican, no estaba con los otros discípulos. Tal vez tenía que hacer un mandado. Quizás, dada su actitud posterior, Tomás estaba muy apenado por la muerte de Jesús y quiso estar solo.
Podemos obtener una imagen un poco más grande cuando comparamos los relatos de la aparición de Jesús en Mateo, Marcos y Juan. Cuando Jesús visitó a los discípulos, les dio instrucciones para ir directamente a Galilea. Pero los discípulos recién se van hasta después de ocho días. ¿Por qué? ¿Qué estaban haciendo? ¿Estaban buscando a Thomas? ¿Esperaron encontrar a su amigo y luego se fueron?
Los discípulos, habiendo encontrado a Jesús, van a buscar a su amigo para compartir su alegría. Le cuentan lo que vieron, lo que dijo Jesús. Pero Thomas estaba tan apenado que no podía creer las palabras de sus amigos, sin importar la alegría con que las pronunciaba. Thomas responde: “A menos que vea la marca de los clavos en sus manos y ponga mi dedo en las marcas de los clavos y ponga mi mano en su costado, no lo creeré”. Thomas está tan atrapado en la tragedia del Viernes Santo que no puede entrar en la alegría del Domingo de Pascua.
Pero los discípulos no abandonan a Tomás. No van a Jesús sin él. No pueden convencerlo de que crea, pero convencen a Thomas para que los acompañe. A pesar de la oscuridad en la que está atrapado, una oscuridad marcada por su incredulidad, sus amigos no se dan por vencidos con él. No entran en su oscuridad, pero lo acompañan. Se quedan con él. Reorganizan sus planes de viaje para incluirlo.
¡Qué modelo tan bueno para la amistad! Cada uno de nosotros tiene momentos en los que estamos atrapados en nuestros propios pensamientos y dudas y necesitamos a esos amigos que se queden con nosotros y nos acompañen de regreso a la luz. Para los que hemos encontrado a Jesús en nuestras vidas, que hemos experimentado la conversión del corazón que ocurre cuando encontramos a Jesús, ¿cómo podemos llegar a aquellos que aún están atrapados en la oscuridad? No podemos disuadirlos, pero podemos acompañarlos.
Me recuerda a mi canción de alabanza favorita de la banda, Full Armor. “Llévame a la luz, muéstrame la verdad y te la mostraré cuando lo necesites”. Porque, ¿no es eso lo que hacen los amigos fieles?
Sheryl is happy to be the number 1 cheerleader and supporter for her husband, Tom who is a candidate for the Permanent Diaconate in the Diocese of Kalamazoo. They are so grateful for the opportunity to grow together in this process. Sheryl’s day job is serving her community as the principal for St. Therese Catholic School in Wayland, Michigan. Since every time she thinks she gets life all figured out, she realizes just how far she has to go, St. Rita of Cascia is her go-to Saint for intercession and help. Home includes Carlyn, a very, very goofy Golden Retriever and Lucy, our not-so-little rescue puppy.
Feature Image Credit: Briana Tozour, unsplash.com/photos/hkkQbPa49UA?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditShareLink
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