Thomas Poem by Gert Strydom

Thomas knocked the secret code on the door
and immediately it swung open,
all of his friends were talking simultaneously.
"Thomas! Thomas, Mary spoke the truth,
He lives." But Thomas did not believe them.

"Unless I see the marks in His hands
and stick my fingers in his wounds,
I will not believe that He is living."
Only a week later while the group was gathered

Jesus appeared among them and said:
"Peace to you, " turning to Thomas
He said to him: "Take your fingers
and investigate my hands. Push
your hand into my side."

Thomas exclaimed: "My Master and my God! "
"You believe what your eyes have seen,
but blessed are those who believe
and hath not seen."

Thomas did never doubt Jesus again
and while visiting Calamina in India
Thomas destroyed an image of the sun god
that the people their were worshiping.

The priests caused their king to arrest him
and Thomas was sentenced
to be burned with red hot metal plates
and then to be cast

into a burning oven
but to their astonishment the fire
did not harm him and he was still
alive and well inside the oven

and in great anger the priests
of the sun god grabbed spears,
throwing them into Thomas
until they killed him.