Thomas, one of the twelve apostles, was blessed to the stature of a Father in Faith of hundreds of thousands of faithful through his declaration of faith. The apostle, distinct from the others, lived in his own unique way. He was a courageous person who dared to ask questions and sought clarity when he did not understand, even during the lifetime of the Master. He stood emotionally with Jesus, inspiring others by his loyalty. He did not want to be merely satisfied with the narration of the resurrection experience of others but insisted on seeing, touching, and personally experiencing the resurrected Lord personally. At his insistence, the Risen One appeared again: a special vision for Thomas!
Thomas did not dare to doubt Jesus who stood before him with the scars of the wounds. and refused to wound Him again. He did not dare to touch the wound. Instead, through his heart-wrenching declaration of faith, Thomas surrendered himself – without doubt, without question, without condition – into the love of the Risen Lord. He cried out in faith:, “My Lord and my God.” The Master read the heart of His disciple in that cry. In that moment, the Master’s mind was filled with the image of countless children, stubborn like Thomas, yearning for an experience of God. Not everyone would always be able to see Him. Therefore, He said: Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.
Jesus removed the requirement of seeing or touching His human or glorified body as a standard for believing in Him. Looking across time, place, and culture, He foresaw a great multitude of people who would believe in Him without seeing or touching Him as Thomas did. He set the standard for their experience of God: there is no need to see or touch Him like Thomas. Just believe; that is enough!
Jesus had a heart capable of recognizing the love of those who loved Him. He understood the longing in the hearts of believers who desire to see and touch Him like Thomas while the gospel of love He imparted has been proclaimed for millennia. In the Gospel of John, chapter 13, verse 1, we read: Before the feast of the Passover, Jesus knew that His hour had come to depart from this world to the Father. Having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.
The Holy Eucharist is the answer to humanity’s longing to see, touch, and remain close to Jesus, who came down to earth as man. The Church’s faith rests on the real presence of the Lord in the Holy Host. Jesus grants a special experience of His presence to those who kneel before the consecrated bread and see his presence through the eyes of faith. The signs and wonders associated with Divine Eucharistdown the centuries are nothing but the special heartbeats of the One that loves us. The closest glimpse of Jesus’ love for us is the sign of Holy Eucharist at Vilakkannoor, in the Archeparchy of Tellicherry. Through the signs and wonders of the Holy Eucharist, Jesus proclaims the truth to us: Blessed are those who believe without seeing!
Missionary work and preaching without a deep experience of God are futile exercises. Like Thomas, we too have the opportunity to experience Jesus personally in the Holy Eucharist. When our hearts cry out, “My Lord and my God,” in sincere love and devotion, the blessedness of which Jesus spoke becomes ours. May this ‘fortunate experience of God,’ as with the Apostle Thomas, lead us on the path of evangelization and suffering to bear witness to the Resurrection and spread the joy to the world!
