Second Sunday of Easter, Year C—2001

 

Homily

In Abbots Langley where I lived during my studies for the priesthood we had a very large hospital for mentally handicapped people—shortly after I was made parish priest there it was closed, thank God.

As a student I remember going there once with a visiting priest from Germany, Father Thomas Rudnik. I took him round to see the bad conditions and to meet some of the inmates. We went into one ward and a patient came right up to him and asked the strange priest his name. My colleague said his name was Thomas and the patient immediately opened his arms wide said in a loud voice, “Ah, doubting Thomas!”

 

Thomas is probably the New Testament character with whom we most associate. Many of us have periods of doubt often lasting many years. Some don’t know whether they really believe or not, and frequently envy the faith of others.

This question of faith is worth examining in detail. First and foremost it is a gift from God. It comes through the action of the Holy Spirit in our lives. It is not a result of effort or an act of will on our part.

I say that it is not a result if effort or will, but you can put yourself in the way of it. You can help yourself to believe—churchgoing, regular prayer and even acting like a believer all help to promote faith.

Faith stems from our Baptism: we were baptised into the faith of the Church. And it is through the Church that our faith grows—through its liturgy, its community life and in the Christian family. It is virtually impossible to maintain one’s faith if completely cut off from the Christian community.

Some people are very bothered by the fact that they don’t believe in certain doctrines. Let me say this in response; don’t worry too much about the things you don’t or can’t believe in. The important thing is to stick with the faith that you do have.

Thomas was a really practical man whose faith didn’t deal with delicate questions of morality, artificial contraception or papal infallibility. He simply saw Jesus and believed in him.

What we need to do is to get things into perspective. Jesus was the Son of God—he died to save us—and we are his Church. These are the important things and everything else flows from them.

You might say that surely belief in Jesus as the Son of God is enough, why add the bit about the Church. But the Church is important. We aren’t isolated from each other, we worship together, we help and pray for one another, and we support each other’s faith. The Holy Spirit works through the entire body of believers and the Church provides us with security in our beliefs.

Individually we are insecure and uncertain but together we are the Church—God’s family. And together we grow in faith and nearer to God. Each one has different gifts and different levels of faith but we all muck in to help each other.

 

One of the real problems of today is people losing their faith. Parents work hard to bring up their children to believe; then they leave home and quite possibly lapse. This is a real problem faced by many families in this parish. Something that we would do well to work out a solution together—if one is possible.

Perhaps it would be good if we analysed what it is that we actually are passing on—that we call faith. Is it the simple faith of the apostles or is it based on the faith of the Apostles but with a lot of outmoded accretions plus our own interpretations and extras?

First, it has to be the faith of the apostles. That is the only thing worth believing in. But it also has to be Good News. The religion that we present to our children mustn’t be a bad news religion, a religion of how many times. If that is what you are passing on then your children are right to reject it.

Our faith really is Good News with capital letters! It is something absolutely positive, liberating and life enhancing. It is a faith which does make a difference. If it is something that your children perceive to be giving you life and hope in today’s world then you can be sure that they won’t abandon it.

Young people today are no different to young people at any other time, they have inbuilt and very acute hypocrisy detectors! We will never fully live up to their expectations but if we live our lives as well as we can in accordance with our beliefs then at least we will be credible. This is witnessing to Christ where it really matters.

What all this comes down to in the end is the quality of our own faith and the quality of the faith of the people gathered together who make up this parish.

Our young people are exactly like Thomas—they want proof—they want to see the Risen Lord alive and active and working in your life and mine. Then they will, or rather, then we all will, doubt no longer but believe.