Seventh Sunday after Pentecost – 7 July 2024

Dearly Beloved Franciscans,

With us and St Thomas’ Church ministering as a cluster, perhaps we’re more aware that this week was the Commemoration of the Apostle of St Thomas. St Thomas, this is the apostle whose default position seems to be a consistently negative one. When Jesus returns to Bethany to raise Lazarus from the dead, knowing full well that the religious leaders there are plotting to kill him, Thomas says, “let us go with him that we too may die”. How much more inspirational it would’ve been if he’d declared his trust in God no matter the greater outcome.

Then there’s Thomas’s disbelief at the resurrection- accounts from his fellow disciples. For him, it really is too good to be true and he simply cannot trust other people’s experiences. We know that Jesus fulfills Thomas’ deepest need and appears to him in his risen form. However, Jesus also highlights a basic faith challenge:
do we relate to the world and the things of God through our fears….OR…. do we relate to everyone and everything through our faith in the living Lord Jesus?

Come and have your faith refueled with our Sunday Service, in-person & livestreamed. Herewith the link: https://www.youtube.com/@st.francisanglicanchurchpa946

Blessings and Love, Michelle