When Doubt Meets the Risen Christ

Centered on Belief That Touches the Wounds

A Day in the Life of Jesus

There are moments in the Gospel narratives when I find myself standing quietly beside one disciple, sensing that his struggle mirrors my own. John 20:24–31 places us squarely in such a moment, inviting us to linger with Thomas—not as a cautionary tale, but as a deeply human witness to the risen Christ. Thomas, called Didymus, “the Twin,” was not present when Jesus first appeared to the gathered disciples. While the others were filled with astonished joy, Thomas was left with only their testimony. When they repeated the words, “We have seen the Lord,” his response was not dismissive, but guarded: “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.”

What strikes me is not Thomas’s doubt, but his honesty. He does not pretend to have faith he does not yet possess. He names what his heart requires. The Greek word used here for “believe,” pisteuō (πιστεύω), is not mere intellectual assent; it implies trust, reliance, and personal commitment. Thomas is not asking for spectacle. He is asking for assurance that the crucified Jesus—the one whose wounds he knew so well—is truly alive. His faith needs continuity between the suffering Christ and the risen Lord. In that sense, Thomas is closer to the heart of the gospel than we often admit. Christianity does not proclaim a vague spiritual survival, but a bodily resurrection marked by scars that still speak.

Eight days later, the disciples are again gathered behind locked doors. The atmosphere feels familiar—fear still lingers, uncertainty still hums beneath the surface. And then, without announcement or explanation, Jesus stands among them and says, “Peace be with you.” The risen Christ does not scold Thomas for missing the first appearance. He does not shame him for his questions. Instead, Jesus goes directly to the place of Thomas’s doubt. “Put your finger here, and see my hands. Put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not be faithless, but believing.” The contrast Jesus draws is not between doubt and belief, but between unbelief and trust. He meets Thomas precisely where he is.

The scene unfolds with reverent intensity. Thomas does not record touching the wounds. The invitation itself is enough. Confronted with the living Christ who knows his words, his fears, and his demands, Thomas responds with the most explicit confession of Jesus’ divinity found in the Gospels: “My Lord and my God!” John’s Gospel has been moving steadily toward this moment. What Thomas declares in worship, John has been proclaiming since the opening verse: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Doubt, when carried honestly into the presence of Jesus, does not diminish faith; it clarifies it.

This is why I am grateful for Thomas. He gives language to a reality many believers experience but are reluctant to confess. Some people need to doubt before they believe—not as an act of rebellion, but as part of the journey toward deeper trust. The danger is not doubt itself, but where it leads. When doubt provokes questions, and questions are pursued with humility, faith often emerges stronger and more grounded. New Testament scholar D. A. Carson notes that Thomas’s story reminds us that “faith that is based on evidence is not inferior faith; it is faith that is honestly won.” The harm comes when doubt hardens into refusal, when questions become excuses, and when skepticism turns into a settled posture of resistance.

Jesus’ closing words widen the horizon beyond Thomas: “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” That blessing reaches across generations and lands squarely on us. We have not stood in that locked room. We have not seen the wounds with our eyes. And yet, John reminds us that his Gospel was written “so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” The signs recorded are sufficient—not because they answer every question, but because they reveal the One who does.

As I walk through this passage, I am reminded that Jesus does not fear our questions. He does not withdraw from us when faith feels fragile. The risen Christ still stands among locked hearts and fearful minds, offering peace and inviting trust. Doubt, when surrendered to Him, can become the doorway to deeper discipleship. The goal is not to remain in uncertainty, but to allow uncertainty to drive us toward Christ rather than away from Him. In that movement, belief becomes not blind optimism, but a settled confidence in the living Lord who still bears the marks of love.

May you find courage today to bring your questions honestly before Jesus. May you discover that the One who conquered death is patient with your process and generous with His grace. And may your confession, like Thomas’s, rise from encounter rather than pressure—“My Lord and my God.”

For further reflection on doubt and faith in the resurrection, see this article from Christianity Today:
https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2013/april-web-only/doubting-thomas-and-faith.html

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The Assumption of the Virgin Mary

This is 1 of the 4 Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII gave its definition on November 1, 1950 with his apostolic constitution named Munificentissimus Deus as the Assumption of Mary, body & soul, into Heaven. It’s celebrated on August 15th.

Munificentissimus Deus mentions several Holy Fathers, theologians, & Doctor of the Church who held to the Assumption of Mary are: Adrian I, Sergius I, Leo IV, John of Damascus, Amadeus of Lausanne, Modestus of Jerusalem, Anthony of Padua, Albertus Magnus, Thomas of Aquinas, Bonaventure, Bernardino of Siena, Robert Bellarmine, Francis de Sales, Peter Canisius, Francisco Suarez, etc.

It’s debated between theologians, clergy, & laypeople whether Mary actually died or whether she was raised up to eternal life without bodily death.

In Eastern Christianity, they have an equal belief called the Dormition of the Mother of God, or the “Falling Asleep of the Mother of God.” In Lutheran churches, August 15 is celebrated as the Feast of St. Mary. Some Anglican denominations observe August 15 under a variety of names, including the Feast of St. Mary the Virgin or the Falling Asleep of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

In the Passing of the Blessed Virgin Mary, this is credited to Joseph of Arimathea, 1 of the apostles (often pictured as Thomas the Apostle, of Doubting Thomas fame), wasn’t there at the time of Mary’s death. But he gets there late. This brought about a reopening of Mary’s tomb. Only Mary’s grave clothes were found in the empty tomb. Just like her son, Jesus. Subsequently, Mary drops her girdle down to the apostles, from Heaven, as proof of the event happening.

The feast was commanded for Constantinople on August 15 by Emperor Maurice in 600. About 50 years later, it was introduced in Rome & is mentioned in a papal decree of Sergius (687-701), who started a procession for the feast.

Pope Leo IV gave the feast a vigil & an octave to solemnise it above all others. An octave is the 8th day after a church festival, including the day of the festival. Pope Nicholas I placed it on a par with Christmas & Easter. On November 1, 1950, Pope Pius XII declared the Assumption of the Virgin Mary as a dogma of faith.

In the 12th century, a German nun Elisabeth of Schonau was allegedly granted visions of Mary & Jesus. This had a far-reaching influence on the Western Church’s tradition. In her work Visio de resurrectione beaten Virginia Mariae, she tells how Mary was assumed in body & soul into Heaven.

On May 1, 1950, Gilles Bouhours, who was a Marian seer, reported to Pope Pius XII a supposed message that the Virgin Mary would have ordered him to tell the Pope on the dogma of the Assumption of the Holy Virgin Mary.

It’s said that Pius XII asked God for a sign that could reassure him that the dogma of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary was ACTUALLY wanted by God. This just happened to be during the Holy Year of 1950.

When Gilles communicated the message to Pius XII, the Pope considered this message the hoped for granted to Gilles by the Pope. Pius XII himself said the dogma of the Assumption of the body & soul of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven.

Some Catholics believe that Mary passed away before being assumed. But they believe that she was miraculously resurrected before being assumed. This is a moralistic interpretation. Others believe she was assumed bodily into Heaven without dying first. This is an immoralistic interpretation. Either interpretation can be held legitimately by Catholics, with Eastern Catholics observing the Feast as the Dormition.

The Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is celebrated in the Roman Catholic Church on August 15th. The Eastern Orthodox & Eastern Catholics celebrated the Dormition of the Mother of God on this date. This is also called the Dormition of the Theotokos, the “falling asleep of the Mother of God. It’s preceded by a 14-day period of fasting.

Eastern Christians believe Mary died a natural death, that he soul was received by Christ upon death, that her body was resurrected after her death, & that she was taken up into a Heaven bodily in anticipation of the general resurrection.

Views differ within Protestantism. They are those with a theology closer to Catholicism sometimes believing in a bodily assumption. Most Protestants don’t believe this.

The Lutheran Church kept the Feast of the Assumption of Mary after the Reformation. They designated August 15th as a lesser festival named “Mary, Mother of Our Lord” or “St. Mary, Mother of our Lord.”

While in Anglicanism, the Assumption of Mary is accepted by some & rejected by others. It disappeared from Anglican worship in 1549. It partially returned to Anglo-Catholic tradition during the 20th century under different names.

A Marian feast on August 15th is celebrated by the Church of England as a non-specific feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This feast is called by the Scottish Episcopal Church it’s a feast called “St. Mary the Virgin.” Other Anglican provinces have a feast of the Dormition. The Anglican Church of Canada’s Book of Common Prayer (1962) marks the day as the “Falling Asleep of the Blessed Virgin Mary.”

Assumption Day on August 15th is a nationwide public holiday in Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chile, Republic of Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Croatia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cyprus, East Timor, France, Gabon, Greece, Georgia (the country), Republic of Guinea, Haiti, Italy, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Republic of North Macedonia, Madagascar, Malta, Mauritius, Monaco, Montenegro (Albanian Catholics), Paraguay, Philippines (Maragondon, Cavite), Portugal, Romania, Rwanda, Senegal, To go, Seychelles, Slovenia, Spain, Syria, Tahiti, & Vanuatu. It was also in Hungary until 1948.

It’s also a public holiday in parts of Germany (parts of Bavaria & Saarland), Switzerland (in 14 of 26 countries), & Bosnia & Herzegovina. In Guatemala, it is observed in Guatemala City & the town of Santa Maria Nebaj. Both cities claim her as their patron saint. In Costa Rica & parts of Belgium, the day is combined with Mother’s Day.

Prominent Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, & Oriental Orthodox countries in which Assumption Day is an important feast day but isn’t a public holiday recognized by the state include the Czech Republic, Ireland, Mexico, the Philippines, & Russia. In Bulgaria, the Feast of the Assumption is the biggest Eastern Orthodox celebration of the Holy Virgin. In Eastern Orthodox churches following the Julian Calendar, the feast day falls on August 28th.

In the Maronite church, the Assumption of Mary is known as the “Assumption of the Holy Mother of God.” It’s celebrated on August 15th.

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Entering Heaven Alive

This is also called ascension, assumption, or translation. This is the belief that’s held in a variety of religions.

Sine death is the normal end to an individual’s life on Earth & the beginning of afterlife, entering Heaven without dying 1st is considered exceptional & usually a sign of a deity’s special recognition of a person’s piety.

In the Hebrew Bible, there are 2 people, Enoch & Elijah, who are to have entered Heaven alive. But both wordings are subject to debate. Genesis 5:24 says, “Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.” But it doesn’t say whether he was alive or dead nor where God took him.

The Book of Kings describes the prophet Elijah being taken towards the Heavens in a whirlwind. But the word can mean can mean either Heaven as the home of God or the sky.

According to the post-biblical Midrash, 8 people went to, or will go to, Heaven alive. This is also referred to as the Garden of Eden & Paradise. The 8 people were: 1) Enoch, Noah’s great-grandpa (Genesis 5:22-24). 2) Elijah (II Kings 2:11). 3) Serah, the daughter of Asher, the son of Jacob. 4) Eliezer, the servant of Abraham who chose Rebecca to be Isaac’s wife. 5) Hiram I, King of Tyre, who helped Solomon build the First Temple. 6) Ebed-Melech, the Ethiopian 7) Jaabez, the son of Judan ha-Nasi, who was the editor of Mishnah 8) Pharaoh’s daughter, sometimes called Bithiah

There were also 4 rabbis who visited Heaven. 4 entered the orchard: Ben Azzai, Ben Zoma, Acher (also known as Elisha Ben Avuya) & Rabbi Akiva. One looked & died. One looked & was harmed. One looked & cut down the trees. The last one went up in peace & went down in peace.

Jesus is considered by vast majority of Christians to have passed away before being resurrected & ascending to Heaven, bodily, to sit at the right hand of God with a promise to someday return to Earth.

There are some people who believe that Jesus didn’t die. These are known as the Swoon hypothesis & Docetism. The Virgin Mary is thought in Eastern Orthodoxy to have passed away before being translated into Heaven. Roman Catholicism believe this also.

Protestants generally believe that Mary died and passed away naturally like another mortal person. Then Mary entered Heaven in a pretty usual manner. But certain observers belonging to the Evangelical Catholic tradition of Lutheranism & the Anglo-Catholic tradition of Anglicanism believe in the Assumption of Mary. Others in these traditions reject the Assumption of Mary.

With the adoption of the Nicene Creed in 325, the ascension of Jesus into Heaven has been officially taught by all Christian churches. It’s celebrated on Ascension Thursday. In the Roman Catholic Church, the ascension of the Lord is a Holy Day of Obligation. In the Eastern Orthodox Church the ascension is 1 of 12 Great Feasts.

In the Reformed Churches, which teaches Calvinist theology, belief in the ascension of Christ is included in the Westminster Confession of Faith, the Heidelberg Catechism, & the Second Helvetic Confession.

Dispensationalists believe in a “rapture.” The rapture is rejected by Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, & most Protestants. The rapture comes from a reference to “being caught up” that’s found in I Thessalonians 4:17. This passage says that when the “dead in Christ” & “we who are alive and remain” will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord/God. Christians differ on the interpretation of this Bible passage.

In the Eastern Orthodox Church teach that Mary died a natural death like any other human being. She was buried by the Apostle, except for Thomas (of Doubting Thomas fame), who was late. 3 days later, after Thomas arrived, Mary was found to be missing from her tomb, just like her son Jesus.

They also teach that the Apostles got a revelation during which Mary appeared to them & told them that she’d been resurrected by Jesus & taken body & soul into Heaven. They teach of Heavenly bliss that other saints will experience only after the Last Judgment.

In Mandaeism, the Left Ginza (1 of their holy books) mentions that Shitil (Seth), the son of Adam, was taken alive to the World of Light without a masiqta or death mass.

In the Hellenistic religion, Apollonius of Tyana was said to have been “assumed” into Elysium by Philostratus.

In Hinduism, Yudhishthira, of the Mahabharata, & Lakshmana, of the Ramayana, are believed to be the only humans that were able to cross the plane between mortals & Heaven/Svarga while still in their mortal bodies. Nahusha was admitted to Heaven in his human body, as were several other kings. Tukaram is believed to have taken to Vaikuntha on Garuda. This event is reported to be seen by villagers.

In Islam, Muhammad was transported from the Great Mosque of Mecca to Al-Aqsa during the Night Journey. After he lead prayers at the mosque, Muhammad ascended into Heaven alive. In Heaven, he greets, individually, previous prophets. Later, he speaks to Allah. Allah gives Muhammad instructions regarding the details of prayer. Muhammad’s ascent into Heaven was temporary. He came back to Earth later. Islamic texts deny the idea of the crucifixion or death accredited to Jesus by the New Testament.

The Quran says that people (Jews & Romans) sought to kill Jesus. But they couldn’t crucify or kill him. Although “this was made to appear to them.” Muslims believe that Jesus wasn’t crucified but instead he was raised by God into the Heavens. This “raising” is often understood to mean through bodily ascension.

Some Islamic scholars have identified the prophet Idris to be the same person as Enoch from the Bible. This is because the Quran states that God “raised him to a lofty station,” & that has taken to be term for ascending, on which it’s concluded that Idris was Enoch.

Members of various Ascended Master Teachings, a group of New Age religions based on Theosophy. They believe that Francis Bacon underwent a physical ascension without experiencing death. He then became the deity St. Germain.

They believe that there were a lot of others that have undergone Ascension. They were called the Ascended Masters & act as spirit guides to human souls on their spiritual path. The leaders of these religions claim to be able to receive channeled messages from the Ascended Masters, which they then relay to their followers.

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Road Trip 2025 summer - unexpected moments 3

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#wotm - #Believing Without Seeing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KB2RRM2znpg

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Opening Prayers for the Second Sunday of Easter Year C (April 27 2025)

These opening prayers for Sunday worship take their inspiration from the Scripture readings of the Revised Common Lectionary. Worship leaders are welcome to use them for worship, but if you print or display any part of them, please credit the author. Comments welcome. The following prayers are for based on the readings for Easter 2C, April 27, 2025. NB The Psalm used is Psalm 150.

The congregation say the words in bold italics.

Call to Worship

Praise God in his sanctuary!
Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!

Psalm 150:1,6

Let us worship God.

Prayer of Approach and Confession

Let us pray.

God of life,
the source of all that is,
you are the Alpha and Omega,
the first and last of creation and eternity
the one who is, and was, and is to come
almighty beyond our imagining.

Yet you have sent Jesus Christ,
to bring us salvation.
In his resurrected body
his wounds remind us
of the costliness of Christ’s love
for each of us and all creation.

And now he has defeated death
freed us from sin
and made possible a new world-
your Kingdom of love and justice.
You have exalted him over all things-
to him be glory for ever and ever!

To your people
you promise the gift of the Holy Spirit
to strengthen our faith
to sustain us in our doubts
and to help us be
the disciples of Christ in the world.

Eternal God,
our Creator, Saviour and Sustainer,
we praise and worship you.

We confess, God of grace,
that we need the strength your Spirit brings.
We fail to be attentive
to the risen Christ’s presence among us.
We find his command to forgive those who sin against us
hard to put into practice.
We want certainty, when Christ asks for faith;
we demand to see what must remain mystery.
Forgive us, and by your Spirit,
strengthen our faith.

silence

By his death and resurrection
Christ has made possible the forgiveness of sins.
So receive the Holy Spirit,
and know that Christ is among us. Amen.

Sharing the Peace

When the Christ stood among the fearful disciples
he said, ‘Peace be with you’.
Christ is among us now
and so let us share the peace of Christ
with each other,
greeting one another with the words
‘Peace be with you’.

The congregation share the peace, saying

Peace be with you.

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Featured image: The Incredulity of Saint Thomas- Caravaggio, 1573-1610. Neues Palais in Sanssouci, Potsdam, Germany. from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. https://diglib.library.vanderbilt.edu/act-imagelink.pl?RC=54170

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Today's pick: Doubting Thomas (1634) - Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn. #art #Rembrandt #DoubtingThomas

https://www.artbible.info/art/large/532.html

Could easily have been a paintball - they hurt too. We'll know when we see a closeup of his ear.

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@StillIRise1963