Doubting Your Doubts

Doubting Your Doubts Greetings from Fr. Bob ... I often speak to people about their doubts concerning faith. In Church, we can appear to be the most assured people in the world. All words and actions seem to have a note of certainty about them. But do you ever have doubts? Probably you do. You are never too old to doubt, to wake in the night and wonder how all this Christian thing makes human sense. How or why would an all-powerful God become human for me? How or why would He die for me and leave His very self in the Eucharist? Or perhaps you wonder if any of it is true. We all know the story of "Doubting Thomas." (John 20:24-25) The other disciples had come to him and told him, "We have seen the Lord!" Thomas reasoned that he had watched Him die. He was dead as dead could be. There was no doubt about that. He could not be alive. Thus, Thomas replied, "Unless I see the nail marks in His hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe." The other disciples were claiming they had seen Him. What about that? Were they deluded in the same way, had they gotten together and agreed to tell the same lie? That did not make sense. Why would they do that? I think that what Thomas was doing was doubting his doubts. Maybe, just maybe, his friends were right, and he was wrong. If you are going to be a skeptic, be an honest one. Take a long look at Christ. Do you know another like Him? If you write Him off, whom or what will you put in His place? Follow that trail long enough and you may begin to find your belief unbelievable. Jesus speaks to all believers and says—"Blessed are you who have not seen, yet believe." So many of us protest—I wish my faith were stronger. You do not realize what great faith God has gifted you. Blessed are you who have not seen, yet you believe. What have you seen? You see bread and wine and you murmur—"Lord, I am not worthy to receive you." What have you seen? A man on a cross and you say—"This is the Son of God." You hear stories about angels and apostles, mysteries and miracles, a crib and a cross and you respond. This is the word of the Lord." Doubt is not always bad. But the honest doubters require themselves, at least occasionally, to doubt their doubts. Our hope as Christians is not in ourselves, but in Christ who died for us. In Christ who rose for us. In Christ who lives for us. You have an incredible gift. You have become what Jesus asked of Thomas. You have become a believer. You can touch God as God has touched you. You can reach God in an instant. When you say, like Thomas, "My Lord and My God," both believing and experiencing Him, then like Thomas, you will never doubt.     Yours in Christ, Fr. Bob Warren, SA