The Rev. Anna Carter Florence, Ph.D. delivers her sermon “Bread at the Gate” Sunday in the Amphitheater.
Column by Mary Lee Talbot
Thomas the Twin, Thomas the Doubter, usually gets his 15 minutes of faith and fame on the Sunday after Easter if a congregation follows the lectionary readings. Little is ever said about what Thomas actually did with his life. “Legend and tradition say he left Palestine and went to India in 52 C.E., to Kerala and founded the Mar Thoma church. When explorers came to Goa in the 16th century, they found faithful Christians who were without the pope, the patriarchy or scripture for 15 centuries,” the Rev. Anna Carter Florence said.
Florence preached at the 9:15 a.m. Tuesday morning worship service in the Amphitheater. Her sermon title was “Changing the Subject,” and the scripture was John 20:19–20, 24–29.
“There are no epistles from Kerala, but there are other ways to look at Thomas. Scripture can’t capture all the world of what God has to see and say,” she said.
Thomas was not a flashy disciple; he did not have a starring role at the Last Supper like Peter and Judas or walk on water like Peter, or make strategic cameos like James and John. Thomas asked good questions and had a twin. He was steady, reliable, competent and content with his role.
“He showed up and was a witness to the life of Jesus, but he missed the Resurrection. When Jesus appeared, for the first time, Thomas was not there and it was the absolute worst time to not be there,” Florence said.
Some people see the Resurrection and some don’t. She continued, “If you happen to be at the tomb, or on the road to Emmaus, or in the house, you will see it. For others, it is not their fault they were not there; scripture does not assign blame. When Resurrection happens, it is an equal opportunity challenge to know how to speak about what was seen and what hasn’t been seen.”
She told the congregation that both seeing and not seeing are important. “We have to practice seeing what God is doing, but it is also a gift not to see but hear second hand.”
Seeing Resurrection takes imaginative fortitude that exceeds the daily allotment. Thomas won’t believe, it is not because he can’t. Rather than rejoice, Thomas explodes, puts himself in the center and makes conditional statements. “Unless I put my hand in his wounds,” sounds more like a tantrum.
Florence said, “Don’t take it personally because it is not about you but about what God is doing to reconcile the world. It is about God having the power to say no to the power of death. Thomas does not have the emotional maturity to understand this and Jesus is generous; he agrees to Thomas’ demands and Thomas has time to rethink the whole situation.”
Jesus appears to ask Thomas: Is the resurrection so impossible, or are you angry because you did not see it? Might the resurrection be true but you are putting God to the test? Was God the subject or are you?
Common wisdom is that doubt is the opposite of faith, Florence told the congregation. “For Thomas doubt is the warping of faithful imagination.” He doubted because he did not see the Resurrection in the same way as the others. His doubts led to him making statements to limit God and his doubts let his ego have free rein.
“So let’s change the subject to something else,” she said. Thomas set sail for India, leaving the old maps and borders behind and replacing them with new partnerships to share the gospel in a different culture. “This was more about God’s glory than Thomas’ ego.”
Whatever Thomas had to learn, he did it well because the next time he is heard from is 15 centuries later. “Even the most ego-centric personality can have a change of heart; even a pot-bound plant can have new life when transplanted. It is not about us but about what God is doing. We have to have an open, patient, apostolic imagination that will carry us to a place not on our maps,” she concluded.
The Rt. Rev. Eugene Sutton, senior pastor of Chautauqua, presided. James Denvil, an actor, attorney and active member of the Cathedral of the Incarnation, Episcopal, in Baltimore, read the scripture. Sonya Subbayya Sutton played “Wonderous Love,” by Samuel Barber for the prelude on the Massey Memorial Organ. The Motet Choir sang “Simple Gifts,” from an 18th-century Shaker text and music arranged by Robert Lehman. The choir sang a cappella under the direction of Sutton. Sutton also played the postlude, “Rubrics: Let the People Say ‘Amen’” on the Massey Organ. Support for this week’s chaplaincy and preaching is provided by the Mr. and Mrs. William Uhler Follansbee Memorial Chaplaincy and the Alison and Craig Marthinson Endowment for the Department of Religion.
