hat made St. Thomas' doubting bad? This past Sunday we heard about Thomas Dydimus, the twin, and his inability to believe that Jesus could really have been alive. He failed to have faith in Jesus Christ, having been the intimate associate of our Lord Jesus, and having seen his miracles, including raising Lazzarus from the dead, yet disbelieving Jesus' prediction of his own death and resurrection. It was unreasonable not to believe given the evidence that Thomas had available to him as a result of being an apostle.Too often, I believe, Christians misunderstand the nature of faith as being inherently opposed to Reason and evidence. For example, someone might be having trouble with their business and an associate says to him, "Just have faith, and everything will work out well with your business: God will give your business success." No, if the gentleman in question is in debt 4 million dollars to loan sharks, and he hasn't sold anything to a client in months, it probably isn't going to work out all right, regardless of how much faith he has in his business prowess. This kind of faith goes directly against reason.
Rather, as Saint Pope John Paul II said, Faith and Reason are the two wings on which the human spirit soars up to God. Jesus Christ reveals Himself in John's gospel as the Logos, a Greek word with a number of associations, one of the strongest being the "Reason" which holds the universe together. In any of the academic disciplines we affix the name "-logy" to the root which tells us the discipline. This is because our Reasonings about the subject, whether it is geology, theology or psychology, are what give us mastery over the subject. Jesus Christ is the Reason behind all of created order, so Faith in him by definition cannot be opposed to Reason.
At the same time, Faith is the overcoming of irrational doubt. While some define man as a rational or wise animal, Homo sapiens, in reality, most people are not wise, nor do they exercise reason most of the time. Most of us (myself included) spend most of the day moving along scripts that more or less do not alter. We get up, brush our teeth, shower, dress, eat breakfast, get in the car, drive to work, etc. But sometimes our scripts are broken by some unexpected event. A Jehovah's Witness shows up at the door. We made a navigational error and must now figure out where on Earth we are and why the scenery is unfamiliar. This is where Reason kicks in. And this can also be where Faith kicks in as well.
Because it can be difficult to trust Reason over instinct. Two examples: I am lost in a forest. But I have a map. The map tells me I should be headed North, and by the look of the stars I should be headed North. But is that really North ahead? I might doubt even though the path is, rationally speaking, quite clear. What if I see a sign in the road that tells me that my destination is in another direction?
I am alone with my fiancee, and we pull up to my apartment. I know rationally I shouldn't enjoy her body until we are married, but we both want it and, it's only two months away, and... It can be hard to obey Reason, and easy to fall into doubting what you should know with complete confidence is true. This is where faith comes in. Faith is clinging to what has been proven to your satisfaction, clinging to what is reasonable, even when continuing to believe so and act so is inconvenient, painful, suddenly seems less likely because of how you happen to be feeling today, or forces you to ignore social pressure.
How much do you trust the map, and your sense of navigation? There are many false signs in the world that will try to misdirect you. You have to be reasonable, and have Faith. Blessed are we who have not seen our Lord Jesus Christ, and yet believe based on the witness of his Catholic Church and his world.
