Topic: Church

Today is not ultimately about Thomas, it is about all of us. Thomas is the one who reminds us that the eyes of faith are far superior to the eyes of sight. The trials we face today are many. The doubts that we have are many. But Jesus comes to meet us in the middle of it all. May we always possess the eyes of faith to view our trials through the lens of the Resurrection.

The temptation in our hearts is always to worship things, places, and circumstances. The Israelites in Exodus 17 were preoccupied with things and circumstances. The Samaritan woman worshiped the place of Jacob’s well, and not the living God. The Israelites asked, “Is the LORD with us here?” The Samaritan woman asked Jesus, “Is the LORD with us anywhere else?” Just as Jesus challenged the woman, he challenges us daily to examine ourselves for anything which impedes our true worship of him.

Every sinful instinct we have tells us we can do it all on our own. We are beholden to our pride. We are so held captive by our pride, that we have a whole month to celebrate it! The bread of man is this: you can define who you are; you can define your identity; you can do whatever you want and expect the world to affirm you; you can define your own meaning of life; you get to define your meaning of love, your meaning of truth, your meaning of justice. All the answers, and ultimately your salvation, are found deep inside yourself. The Holy Eucharist is a repudiation of all of this, everything our culture stands for.

The Day of Pentecost is one of the most widely misconstrued events in Church history. Contrary to popular belief, the Day of Pentecost is about far more than the gift of speaking in tongues – it is about the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Church, empowering Christians as God’s chosen people to go forth and renew the face of the earth.

Jesus told his disciples, “Just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another” (John 13:34). The Rev. Galloway challenges us to examine how far we fall short of this commandment and reminds us that love does not mean saying things people want to hear – it means telling the truth.