Page 149 - laten-08-06-2020

Thomas and the Cross

Focus : Peace Emerges from Brokenness

I Samuel 17: 132-31, John 20: 19-29, 2 Corinthians 12: 1-10
Introduction

hese Lenten days we are journeying through the way of cross
Twith Jesus along with many people involved in the event of
crucifixion. When we seriously examine People and characters
involved in the process of cross we cannot overlook the place of
a young man named Thomas and his search for peace of Christ
journeying with the cross of his Master.
It is often said that voices of youth cause discord in the
harmony (shalom) of the “world”. Young people have been
widely depicted as the reasons for violence and perverting the
“original values” of “religion” which gives “peace” to entire
creation.

It is the fact that the origins of the contemporary
major religions and movements are centered on the so called
nonconformist youths. Jesus, Buddha, Muhammad, Sankara,
Sree Narayana Guru and many others come under this
classification, for they were young and their voices disturb the
shalom, salaam or santhi of the community. These vulnerable
but strong voices of youth which came from the margins of the
society disturbed the mainstream. Later, however, when these
voices became part of the mainstream, they also consider, the
young voices of the then new generation remain outside the
“peace community.” There are “good youth”, the ones who were
always “silent, obedient and supportive” to the mainstream
and they enjoyed the “mainline shalom”. The rest were called
rebels or the faithless or doubting by the mainstream of the new
generations. The relevant question therefore is: Why does the
peace (shalom) proclaimed by the “community” often become
irrelevant to the youth? Why do the voices of the mainstream
leaders become unbelievable in the eyes of the ‘non conformist

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Lenten Meditations Re - Imaging People