April 16, 2012

Yesterday’s readings were about Jesus appearing to the Apostles in their barricaded shut upper room. They had witnessed all that had happened to Jesus during His Passion and death, and were now hiding for fear of retaliation from the Jewish leaders. After seeing all that they had seen and learned from Jesus himself, they could not yet believe what had happened, nor go out and preach about it because they did not have the Spirit of God with them as of yet. Then, when Jesus did appear to them, they believed and understood a bit better. They excitedly tell their fellow Apostle, Thomas, that Jesus was there, but old “doubting Thomas” scoffs at them. How could he not believe it was possible after seeing Jesus perform any of the many miracles they had witnessed?

Jesus appears to all of them the next week, and Thomas is with them. Jesus goes up to Thomas, and instructs him to place his fingers in the wounds on His hands and His feet, and to put his hand into Jesus’ side. Then he says, “You see and you believe. Blessed are they who do not see and still believe.”

          That is you and I! We have to believe without seeing. Thomas gives me some comfort in my faith life, as he was right there and had his doubts about things. I was raised believing, and I still believe, but we all have days when our faith waivers a bit. We can feel the wind, but we cannot see the wind, yet know it is there. It is much the same with God – He is there, we just have to look for Him.

I had a nice evening meeting with a small group of friends who gather periodically to discuss our Faith and to share with one another our journey’s tales as we travel through this world. It is a great, faith-filled discussion each time we gather. I enjoy those gatherings, and I feel the presence of God each time in our discussions. We are all fathers of families, business people, and we all share the same Catholic Faith and Beliefs. I am Blessed to have been asked to join this small group.

There should be more groups like this small group. Gather a few friends together, have a few snacks and beverages, and discuss your belief in God and His teachings. That is how we learn to grow in our faith and to help to reach out to others and spread that Faith. Make it a great day. 

Pray for a friend today who has surgery this morning. We hope for a good outcome for him and for his family.