Peace United Church of Christ, Rochester Minnesota
Sunday April 11, 2010
John 20:19-31
When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.”
A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.” Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.
In a report released in 2009 the top 5 Brand Names recognized around the world were as follows:
1. Google. 2. Microsoft. 3. Coca-Cola. 4. IBM. 5. McDonalds
We’ve all heard of these brand names and labels. Many of us trust and depend on these labels. When I prepare my sermons, I used google searches. I know I could use Yahoo or AOL or Bing or Alta Vista…but the label has stuck with me; I have a childhood friend who works for Google. The name has been imprinted in my psyche.
This is good news or Google. It’s a good thing for Microsoft, Coca-Cola, IBM, McDonalds, even Mayo. When labels become well-known and trusted, companies profit.
All of us label things. The human brain is a wonderful information processor and labeler. We take in thousands and millions of details with every glance, sound or touch. Yet we are seldom overwhelmed with the amount of the information we are processing in every second. One reason that we are able to cope with so much data is that we categorize it all. We look for what is new, what is different, what has changed. Then we try to match the new information to the categories that already exist in our minds. We need only find the category that a new thing is most similar to, and then drop it into that convenient "bucket."
In our office we label and categorize files. My files read “fundraisers, curriculums, fundraisers, worship materials, fundraisers, retreat centers, fundraisers.
In our e-mail accounts we label our mail: read, trash, sent, unread, inbox.
How about labels for people. Mother, Father, Partner, Spouse, Colleague, Teacher, Student.
What happens when negative labels stick to a person?
In the disability community this question is a hot topic. In fact, the use of negative language has proven time after time to be a major influence on individual and public attitudes towards people with disabilities
Some labels feel like a life sentence, dooming sufferers to a life of verbal abuse and second-class-citizen status.
Ron Coleman, diagnosed with schizophrenia in 1982 and treated with electro-shock therapy and drugs, has cited his own nightmare experience in the psychiatric system to call for the term “schizophrenic” to be dropped altogether.
The 49-year-old from Fife said: "I lived the schizophrenia label instead of living as a person. People treat you as if you're a piece of crap, talk to you like a non-person. I got people battering on the door, shouting psycho' and throwing things at the window. I spent 10 years in a drug-induced, zombied haze.."
"I still hear voices, but I've found a way of living with them. Since then I've got married, had kids, got a house and love going to work every day."
A growing number of mental health experts in Scotland agree that cases like Coleman's demonstrate the need to scrap the term schizophrenia, since it has, they believe, become a stigmatized and scientifically redundant category.
"It's a loaded, dated label and it can be difficult to see beyond," said Eddie McCann, senior lecturer in mental health at Napier University. "It gives the impression that it is a perpetual state, but people do get better and lead fulfilling lives.
The 49-year-old from Fife said: "I lived the schizophrenia label instead of living as a person. People treat you as if you're a piece of crap, talk to you like a non-person. I got people battering on the door, shouting psycho' and throwing things at the window. I spent 10 years in a drug-induced, zombied haze.."
"I still hear voices, but I've found a way of living with them. Since then I've got married, had kids, got a house and love going to work every day."
A growing number of mental health experts in Scotland agree that cases like Coleman's demonstrate the need to scrap the term schizophrenia, since it has, they believe, become a stigmatized and scientifically redundant category.
"It's a loaded, dated label and it can be difficult to see beyond," said Eddie McCann, senior lecturer in mental health at Napier University. "It gives the impression that it is a perpetual state, but people do get better and lead fulfilling lives.
Our story today is one about a man who had a negative label attached to his name. This name has stuck with him throughout Christian history so that even people not familiar with the Christian story know about “Doubting Thomas”.
We heard the story retold last week. Mary went to the tomb and saw that Jesus was not inside. She saw the living Christ and ran to tell the other disciples. It was that same evening. The disciples had met and had locked themselves inside for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.
But where was Thomas? The author of the gospel doesn't tell us. Some think he was out and about getting on with his life. While we don't know where Thomas was when Jesus first appeared, we do know where he wasn't – locked in the upper room for fear of the religious authorities.
When Thomas sees the other disciples again they all tell him about what happened. He can’t believe it! I don’t blame him. The claim is pretty incredible. Our culture today values proof. We need hard evidence. “Seeing is believing” “If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t believe it.” All the other disciples got to see with their own eyes; they didn’t have to believe the testimony of someone else…they saw it firsthand.
One week later Thomas gets his chance. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”
Anne Lamott, one of my favorite authors, says, “The opposite of faith is not doubt: It is certainty.” I believe this is true. Doubt is not a bad thing. It’s a healthy part of faith. Poet Denise Levertov says, “I believe with doubt. I doubt and interrupt my doubt with belief.”
There are many studies on faith and how our faith grows, changes and matures as we grow older. When we are young children, we imitate the actions of adults. My mother loves to tell the story of when I was a young child and my mother and father were driving in the car with me in the back seat. All of a sudden I recited the Lords Prayer. They didn’t teach it to me, I must have learned it at the Christian daycare and preschool where I attended. My parents were spell bound. This is the faith of a young child, imitating the practices and words of our parents and Sunday school teachers. This is a holy and sacred faith.
As we enter elementary and early adolescent years, it’s important for us to belong to a group. This is my church. This is what I made in Sunday school class today. Our faith largely centers on what others within our group, our faith community, are doing. THIS is a holy and sacred faith.
As we reach late adolescence, we enter into a time of SEARCHING FAITH We ask questions, "Is this what I believe?" Thomas is our example of this. He will not blindly accept what others have said, but needs to find his own answers. This stage of faith is adding the "head" to the "heart.” It appears, regretfully, that many adults in churches have never had the benefit of an environment which encouraged searching faith. Some persons are forced out of the church during this time and, sadly, some never return; others remain in searching faith the rest of their lives. In spite of his questions, Thomas remained with the disciples. There he discovered the answers to his questions. THIS is a holy and sacred faith.
Even still, another level to faith comes only through the searching stage. This is OWNED FAITH. In our confirmation class we encourage questions. After exploring the question, "Is this what I believe?" one, hopefully, discovers a Christian answer that declares: "This is what I believe." The Thomas scene ends with such a personal confession: "My Lord and my God" -- a confession we don't hear from any of the other disciples who did not go through the same questioning as Thomas. This is a strong, personal faith gained through experience. THIS is a holy and sacred faith. Doubting Thomas. Is this really who Thomas was? Or is this the label the world will remember him by? What about the heavy labels we wear today. With the coming of Youtube and Facebook photos, a picture of someone can be posted in an instant and a label applied and remembered for years to come, even if the video or photo has been taken down. What about the labels that just won’t stop following us around.
I’m divorced. I’m a single parent. I filed for bankruptcy. I have a criminal record. I was fired. I’m a recovering alcoholic. I have a mental illness. I’m a jock, I’m a nerd. I’m part of the popular crowd, I’m in band.
Behind every label is a living breathing human being. We may remember Thomas as “Doubting,” but he was perhaps the only Apostle who went outside the Roman Empire to preach the Gospel. He is also believed to have crossed the largest area, which includes the Persian Empire and India. In John 3:16, when Lazarus has just died, the disciples are resisting Jesus' decision to return to Judea, where the Jews had previously tried to stone Jesus. Jesus is determined, and Thomas says bravely: "Let us also go, that we might die with him." Thomas also speaks at The Last Supper. Jesus assures his disciples that they know where he is going but Thomas protests that they don't know at all. Jesus replies to this and to Philip's requests with a detailed exposition of his relationship to God the Father. Behind every label is a child of God.
Peace United Church of Christ is a place where we look beyond the labels. We say, “No matter who you are, or where you are on life’s journey, you are welcome here.” Whether you work for IBM, Google, McDonalds, or you’re unemployed. Whether you wear Tommy Hilfiger, Guess, or TJ Max brand names, and whether you’re a doubter, a searcher, a believer, or anywhere in between, the label that matters the most here that you are a child of God. This is Peace Church, “Make Yourself at Home.” Amen.
