When Thomas professes a lack of faith in Jesus rising from the dead he’s actually professing faith in something else. Thomas already believes in justice and mercy, and their many gods. Justice is invented and dispensed by militarists; chief priests, elders, Pilates, and other such gods. Their justice consists of writing unjust laws for the people and then punishing them for any violations. If begged such rulers will show rare leniency, in other words, mercy. Since these gods had already executed their ultimate justice by murdering Jesus on the cross, begging for mercy was irrelevant. Jesus was dead and that was the end of it; for Thomas. It was not however the end of it for Jesus or for disciples. Jesus’ Resurrection creates another possibility for the power of Divinity; it is neither justice nor mercy but compassion that gives rise to healing.
The compassion able to give rise to healing between people is deflated when justice and mercy are raised up instead. Justice and mercy are raised up by the gods who would have us beg for them. The inversion is apparent in the Roman Catholic chief priest Francis who would have people beg for justice and mercy. Francis named 2016 as a Jubilee Year of Divine Mercy. According to Francis, “The Cross of Christ is God’s judgement on all of us and on the whole world.” … Thus “there will be priests to whom I will grant the authority to pardon even those sins reserved to the Holy See … Let us .. beg the Father to forgive our sins and to bathe us in His merciful “indulgence.” An imaginary deity in the sky is believed to lord punishment over lowly sinners. The heavenly deity needs earthly priests to maintain the system of inequality. Instead, real people here on earth can cooperatively and compassionately help each other through pain. Compassion is the power that puts all people in touch with the pain all such gods wreck upon humanity with their justice and mercy. Compassion is the power of Jesus inviting Thomas into the Body of Christ and its pain; “Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side.” Compassion is the power of the mostly Mennonite people of Newton, Kansas, inviting a nation into the Body of Christ. They did this after yet another god dispensing justice and mercy brandished his weapon – not a cross this time but a gun – and murdered Christs of our time. The good people of Newton brought together all their hands and put them in their collectively wounded side: “It was agreed throughout all the denominations that… we should respect (the shooter’s) family and even offer some consolation to his family as well…. That was a concern on people’s minds, his kids. What are they going through? What will they go through in their life?… Our history of peacemaking … has trained us to respond in a way that seeks to offer compassion to everyone involved.”
“You asked me once, and I could give no answer, How far dare we throw off the daily ruse, Official treacheries of face and name … I could hazard An answer now, if you are asking still. We are a small and lonely human race … The most that we can do for one another Is let our blunders and our blind mischances Argue a certain abrupt compassion. … Perhaps the harshest fact is, only lovers–And once in a while two with the grace of lovers– Unlearn that clumsiness of rare intrusion … It takes a late and slowly blooming wisdom To learn that those we marked infallible Are tragi-comic stumblers like ourselves. (Stepping Backward – Adrienne Rich)
Prayer: Spirit of Compassion, we vow to live in touch with each other’s wounds.
Question: Who needs my compassion?
April 3, 2016 Gospel John 20:19-31 Second Sunday of Easter