In an interview with Diane
Sawyer prior to the release of his movie, "The Passion of the Christ," Mel
Gibson said he believed the Gospels were written by eyewitnesses of the events they
narrate.
Though most Christians probably agree with him, no Scripture
scholar does. Nothing has been passed down to us by anyone who personally knew the
historical Jesus. Our evangelists, along with Paul and the other authors of the Christian
Scriptures, knew only the risen Jesus.
That’s why Jesus’ last statement in Sunday’s
Gospel (Jn 20: 19-31) is so important. "You became a believer," He tells the
astonished Thomas, "because you saw me. Blest are they who have not seen and still
believed."
Witnesses?
Along with Gibson, we’ve traditionally presumed that the
"non-see-ers" are the readers of John’s Gospel, not the author. But if
scholars are correct, Jesus’ words apply to every writer of the Christian Scriptures.
Our biblical faith has been handed down to us not by the fortunate few who accompanied a
prophetic carpenter on His preaching trips through Galilee and Judea, but by the many who
recognized Jesus years after His resurrection, appearing to them in their everyday lives.
When it comes to believing Jesus is alive, we’re invited
to trust people who never actually put their finger into the nail marks or their hand into
His side. Yet they were just as certain about what they experienced as were Thomas and the
rest of the Twelve 2,000 years ago on that Sunday evening in the upper room.
How did our Christian biblical authors surface the risen
Jesus in their lives? The narratives which describe His appearances offer some clues.
Notice Jesus’ statement, "As the Father has sent me, so I send you."
Jesus’ first followers were convinced they were carrying on Jesus’ ministry.
What He once did, they were now doing. The faith which motivated Him was motivating them.
They were "other Christs." That’s why Luke in the first reading (Acts 5:
12-16) has no problem demonstrating how the early Christian community in Jerusalem was,
like Jesus, met with mixed reaction. On one level, "people held them in great
esteem." But, at the same time, "no one else dared to join them." When
Christians imitate Jesus, they discover Jesus.
Jesus’ power
Peter, as a member of the community, even shares in
Jesus’ miraculous power of healing. Knowing Jesus wants us to share in His ministry
strengthens us to carry on that ministry and to recognize His presence while doing it.
See how much time the community spends with "the sick
and those who were troubled by unclean spirits." Thomas’ desire to touch
Jesus’ wounds mirrors the way most Christians come in contact with the risen Jesus
– by touching the community’s wounded. Often, these individuals have been
wounded by the very people now reaching out to touch them.
That seems to be why John’s newly risen Jesus makes a
big thing about forgiving people’s sins. Unless we’re willing to forgive those
who have wounded us, we’ll never experience Jesus living in them.
The author of Revelation (Rev. 1: 9-13, 17-19) also believes
the risen Jesus’ guarantee that we’ll have new things to "see now and...in
time to come." The risen Jesus never comes to us twice in exactly the same way.
Though He’s the one unchanging force in our lives, He always manifests Himself in
different ways in different people.
An openness to the new in our lives is required for
discovering Jesus among us. It forces us to be constantly alert, always looking for Him,
always reflecting on what’s going on around us.
Were Gibson corrected about the Gospel authors and being
eyewitnesses, it would make faith in the risen Jesus easier, but far less challenging.