dec 21 devotional

December 21:  The Feast Day of St. Thomas - Thomas always seems to me to be a great example of mistaken accusation. He is accused of being a doubter, thus “doubting Thomas”. When, in fact, he really was one who did not experience what everyone else experienced, and could not assent to something to which he himself had not been witness. He seems, to me, to be more like the person at a meeting where the momentum to take a certain action carries everyone along, except one brave soul who asks, “why?” or says “I don’t feel the same way”. Lasting faith does not come from simply accepting what others have told us, but must also be experienced and understood for ourselves. Thomas is the beacon in the gospel, the voice that demands that we do not agree because others tell us to, but because we deeply agree, or have come to know that which we profess. Thomas always went his own way. While the other apostles stayed in the near east, or went toward Rome, he went to India. The season leading up to Christmas is filled with traditions and familial expectations. The feast of St. Thomas reminds us to not just go along, but to insist that we belong.