[Reflection] John 6:36
But I told you that although you have seen [me], you do not believe.
“To see is to believe.” That’s what people have said since St. Thomas declared he would not believe Christ had risen until he had the evidence of his eyes to prove it so. Yet today, Jesus tells those following him that in spite of all the sensory evidence they have had up to that point, their hearts refuse to take that leap of faith into recognizing the Messiah before them.
Was it because their minds were so fixed on a particular concept of a messiah that they kept asking for sign after sign (and disbelieving every time)? Was it because they were hoping so hard that this, finally, was the promised Savior that they were now afraid to believe, just in case they were proven wrong? Was it because they had lost all hope in the possibility of a Savior, so that in spite of the evidence, they chose to reject the conclusions their minds were making?
A healthy dose of skepticism is part of being human — it keeps us from getting involved in things that are bad for us. Jesus warns us against false prophets, St. Paul advises us to “test the spirits”. But beware of using the need for more proof as a reason for staying frozen in one place!
It is through our previous knowledge of God’s wondrous ways that we are able to push ourselves over the edge. It is our knowledge of his love that allows us to believe that He will catch us when we get to the other side.
“Blessed are those who have not seen, and still believe!”
