No doubt about it. The annual pile-on-Thomas fest is rounding the bend. I will continue to shout from the rooftops that this is an unjust treatment of the disciple called the Twin. But some people just do not let things go, and they refuse to reconsider their prior conceptions of someone’s behavior and choices. It’s really a matter of spiritual immaturity in a Church held captive to performancism and in love with worldly power and appearance of perfection.
It’s a dangerous place to be, really. If there is one thing that is clear about John 20:19-31, it is that Jesus’ blessing is for those who believe without seeing him. How are they supposed to do that? The answer is stunningly simple. The apostles received the Holy Spirit and were entrusted with a powerful gift: “if you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven. If you don’t forgive them, they aren’t forgiven.” The Holy Spirit is breathed by Jesus upon the leaders of the Church to accomplish an incredible mission—announcing forgiveness. That word of absolution is absurdly powerful. And it is how Jesus is encountered in a post-ascension world. The very echoes of “Your sins are forgiven” from the lips of God’s people are so close to the heart of Jesus that he can be known and trusted by those who hear them.
But a Church hung up on performance and appearance, that is unable to separate from the world’s priorities, is unable to offer that word, and so the world is unable to believe. What if, friends, people do not believe, because the Church’s apostolic inheritance to pronounce forgiveness is neglected? What if faith has not sprung up because they have not heard good news? Expect more from the bishops and priests of the Church. Expect us to announce that forgiveness. Expect the deacons and the baptized to invite the world to the waters that they can hear. Because when they hear, they will trust. And when they trust, they and we will be blessed. The resistance to the world’s incursions will not be found in a more pure doctrinal statement, or a more accurate repetition of the ancient liturgy. It can be found in a loving obedience to Jesus, beginning with those entrusted with leadership and the call to forgive.