And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them:
then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said,
Peace be unto you. - John 20:26
After John 20:25, the setting in the very next verse is after eight days. Why did Christ appear next only after eight days?
St. John Chrysostom (Mar Ivanios), considered the greatest
preacher of the Early Church, speaks about this time gap which is best said
in the Saint's own words:
"And why does He not appear to him straightway, instead of "after eight days"? John 20:26. In order that being in the mean time continually instructed by the disciples, and hearing the same thing, he might be inflamed to more eager desire, and be more ready to believe for the future." (Homily 87 on the Gospel of John)
St. Thomas was kept in waiting for eight long days, before the Lord granted his wish of appearing before Him again, so that he may grow in the desire, so that he may become ever more eager, so that he may be completely ready to believe, and be unwavering and faithful to undertake his ardous journey of the future, to the distant lands of India.On each of these eight days, he would have again heard from the others how they "Saw" the Lord, what the Lord told them, what they asked the Lord, and what Thomas had missed.
St. John the Evangelist had a similar experience later in his life, of missing the Lord, of missing the Liturgy, of missing the company of the others, when he was banished to the island of Patmos. As a result of that, the yearning in St.John grew in his desire to be one with the Lord and the rest and because St.John missed the company of the Lord so much, the heavens and the secrets were opened to him and the Revelations of the past, present and the future were unraveled to Him, enabling Him to pen down what we have today as the Book of the Revelations.
Similarly St. Thomas missed the Lord. Those eight
days might have been like eight years for Thomas. Each day would probably be
in prayer and waiting for the Lord, just like the Church waits for the
coming down of the Holy Spirit in preparation for the Feast of the
Pentecost.
Thomas waited and prayed eagerly for the Lord to come, he had a burning desire to meet the Lord and on the eighth day he was granted His wish. May his prayer, may his wait, may his desire to be in the Lord's company also inspire us to yearn for the Lord's presence, now and for ever more.
Character of Thomas : A representative of all Unbelievers
Src: ICON
After John 20:25, the setting in the very next verse is after eight days. Why did Christ appear next only after eight days?
"And why does He not appear to him straightway, instead of "after eight days"? John 20:26. In order that being in the mean time continually instructed by the disciples, and hearing the same thing, he might be inflamed to more eager desire, and be more ready to believe for the future." (Homily 87 on the Gospel of John)
St. Thomas was kept in waiting for eight long days, before the Lord granted his wish of appearing before Him again, so that he may grow in the desire, so that he may become ever more eager, so that he may be completely ready to believe, and be unwavering and faithful to undertake his ardous journey of the future, to the distant lands of India.On each of these eight days, he would have again heard from the others how they "Saw" the Lord, what the Lord told them, what they asked the Lord, and what Thomas had missed.
St. John the Evangelist had a similar experience later in his life, of missing the Lord, of missing the Liturgy, of missing the company of the others, when he was banished to the island of Patmos. As a result of that, the yearning in St.John grew in his desire to be one with the Lord and the rest and because St.John missed the company of the Lord so much, the heavens and the secrets were opened to him and the Revelations of the past, present and the future were unraveled to Him, enabling Him to pen down what we have today as the Book of the Revelations.
Thomas waited and prayed eagerly for the Lord to come, he had a burning desire to meet the Lord and on the eighth day he was granted His wish. May his prayer, may his wait, may his desire to be in the Lord's company also inspire us to yearn for the Lord's presence, now and for ever more.
Character of Thomas : A representative of all Unbelievers
Src: ICON
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