Second Easter, 2004:

This is Low Sunday. If it is true that absence makes the heart grow fonder, a lot of people must love this church! Many who were here last Sunday are not present today. I hope we didn’t offend them or make them feel uncomfortable. Perhaps they’re just busy today or something has come up. Perhaps they just wanted to show those who are here how much they might be missed when they aren’t present. I’m not sure.

I did hear a wise old preacher talk about how people sometimes get mad and decide to hurt the church by leaving. He said, "such folks are wrong in thinking their leaving will hurt the church. The tree is never hurt when an old dried-up apple falls to the ground."

Perhaps the Apostle Thomas was mad and hurt. Maybe he just couldn’t be with the others. For whatever reason, Thomas was absent when Jesus returned for the first post-resurrection appearance. The fearful disciples were closed up in the room in which they had eaten a last meal with their teacher. They were filled with defeat, despair, and depression. The doors were locked against the unknown. The bolt not only kept others out; it kept the disciples locked inside. The physical lock on the door also symbolized a spiritual lock on their hearts.

Into this fearful band the risen Lord comes; beyond locks, in spite of deadbolts and chains, at the point of their deepest fears and he noticed that Thomas was not present. Where was Thomas? Why was he absent? Where are so many of those who were here last Sunday? Does the Roanoke Times or Lynchburg News Progress hold more Good News than our corporate worship? Where the other disciples not friendly enough with Thomas that he stayed away? Did we ignore some of those who were with us last week? I hope not. I do believe this is one of the warmest and most friendly churches in the Episcopal expression of Christendom.

Surely Thomas and those not with us today would not miss the glorious encounter with the Risen Lord for any trivial reasons would they? We do have personality types. One type is optimistic until all hope is gone. Another refuses to hope as long as there is a reason not to hope. Thomas was probably the second type. He had seen the cruelty visited upon the teacher. He had witnessed the trial, the beating, and the heavy weight of the cross. Those things were inescapable facts. He knew those things had happened. But, Thomas had forgotten the promise of Christ and the power of God. Apparently, others have forgotten, too. In the dark hours of life, Thomas had misplaced his candle of faith.

So, what can we say about the absent disciple, both then and now? First, being absent comes with a price. Because Thomas had chosen to be away, he missed the risen Lord. Oh, yes, Jesus the Christ is everywhere, but the point is that if he is not sought in particular, he will not be found in general. The promise he made was that he would be present with his disciples in the breaking of the bread, in the corporate prayers, in the fellowship, in the church gathered, and even in the Episcopal Church, even in St. John’s, Bedford. I reject out of hand the comments that suggest that because we do not worship in a particular way the risen Lord is not among us. I hope we will continue to teach and believe that even liberal can be Christian. I pray we will continue to hold diverse opinions on various social and political issues. I hope we will continue to resist the effort to condemn certain people. His promise is to be with us in the midst of our struggles, our fears, our defeats, our despair, and our doubts. If we come together to give and not to get, to love and not to judge, to support each other in spite of our differences, then the risen Lord is here.

Absent disciples are generally the first to question anything the church does. Absent disciples sometimes attempt to hold the church hostage by not giving of their time, talent, or treasure for the work to be done. The church needs its absent disciples, but not nearly as much as the absent disciples need the church.

The second thing we can say about absent disciples is that they must have a personal experience in order to believe. There are those who have experienced the present, resurrected Lord and they attempt to share that experience with others and the others have their doubts. In spiritual matters each person needs, indeed must have personal experiences. It is difficult for my experience of the power of the resurrected living to be yours. I can share what that’s like but nothing can replace the personal experience of the risen Lord. We base so much of our conception of reality on our experiences. If we have not had a moving spiritual encounter we conclude that there is no such thing. Deciding to be a part of a worshipping community increases our chances of having that personal encounter, not because the risen Lord is here to the exclusion of other places, but because we come searching for that encounter. We stand a better chance of finding what we are looking for when we look in particular.

Finally, we can say to absent disciples that of all the places where one might take their doubts and skepticism, the church needs to be the first such place. The ten disciples who were present when the risen Lord appeared reported that experience to Thomas. Thomas doubted it. But, someone in the band must have said, "Thomas, come be with us. We need you. Bring your doubts, it’s okay. Above all else, just join us again."

Can I tell you as lovingly as possible that your job, my job, is to be an evangelist? We are to invite others to come. Riddled with doubts, filled with despair, overcome with self-loathing and misery, stinking with the smell of sin and in spiritual rags we issue the invitation. "Come be with us, we need you here. You need to be here. Bring yourself just as you are. You’ll be accepted and welcomed.

Thomas did. Eight days later Jesus the Christ, the risen Lord, was again with them and as Thomas put out his hand to touch the scars of death, he found life. It was then that Thomas had his doubts lifted. This community is filled with absent disciples. Will you help them know by the words of your mouth and the meditations of your heart and the deeds of your life that difficulties and doubts are very often the road to solid faith? It is the very best way I know of to keep from being an old dried-up apple. Amen.