1. Fear that all is lost.
2. Suspicion that death still has dominion, that physical resurrection is impossible, that no one can die and rise again.
3. Mere resurrection isn’t enough, that only a wounded-and-risen savior is the genuine article
Key points
This is the second week of Eastertide (there are seven such weeks, poetically one more than the six weeks of Lent). This week and next are stories of the risen Jesus appearing to his followers, and the following four weeks will explore Jesus’ teachings about faith and intimacy with God.
A recurring theme in the resurrection appearance stories is how, from the very outset, Christian communities struggled to perceive and believe. For starters, the risen Jesus isn’t recognized at first. Mary Magdalene thinks he’s the local gardener, and later in John, the disciples don’t recognize him on the beach (John 20:15; 21:4). Likewise, as we’ll see next week, in Luke, two of Jesus’ followers have an extended conversation with him (and about him!) without realizing who he is (Luke 24:13-27). In this way, both John and Luke go out of their way to suggest that resurrection means something more mysterious than simple resuscitation: Jesus has risen, and at the same time he is somehow different. Part of what’s going on here is early Christian communities wrestling with the fact that great numbers of people didn’t notice Jesus’ return (as they did, for example, in the case of Lazarus’ resurrection (see John 12:9)). And part of it is an exploration of the idea that “resurrection” defies conventional categories. In any case, Jesus is back, but only a few have eyes to see that it’s really him; even his closest followers need help.
Thomas just forthrightly asks for what the others have already received, including the opportunity to inspect Jesus’ wounds. Thomas is no different than the rest of the disciples. On the contrary, he’s a representative icon for their doubts, and for their dependence on “signs and wonders” in order to believe.
