The Image of God

The Incredulity of Saint Thomas, or Doubting Thomas, by Caravaggio is a painting created in the Italian Baroque style in 1601-02. It is currently housed in the Sanssouci in Potsdam, Germany. The subject of this painting is based upon the Gospel of John which says:

"Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, 'Peace be with you.' When He said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him, 'We have seen the Lord.' So he said to them, 'Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.' And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst and said, 'Peace to you!' Then He said to Thomas, 'Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving but believing.' And Thomas answered and said to Him, 'My Lord and my God!'" (John 20.19-20, 24-28)

Caravaggio's painting, which truly embodies the new baroque style of the time, is physically very shocking. Abandoning the rules that had guided artists for the past century which idealized both the human and the religious experience, The Incredulity of Saint Thomas, brings the historical experience of Thomas, Jesus, and the other disciples to life. The folds of skin and expressions on the subjects' faces are not serene and beautiful, but organic and immediate. It is as if the viewer could also reach out and place a finger in the hole in Jesus' torso. With gritty naturalism, the disciples in the painting have characteristically common appearances, yet their reactions to the reality of the situation, enhanced by the natural, but dramatic and very stark lighting, highlights the incredible and incredulous experience with which we, as viewers, are able to connect.

As one who is overwhelmed with the possibility and reality of trying to create an image of God, I was especially struck by Caravaggio's Doubting Thomas. At first glance I was slightly repulsed by the realistic and very direct image of Thomas poking his finger so deeply into Jesus' side. Had it been me, I truly believe I would have been just as doubtful as Thomas, yet when faced with Christ in person, I believe I would have been both very embarrassed and anxious to accept Christ's resurrection. Yet in Caravaggio's painting, Thomas follows through on his forceful exclamations. He doesn't just touch Jesus' side, he probes and observes and gets very close. In particular Caravaggio, as with many of his paintings, caught my eye with Doubting Thomas. I love and appreciate, though still shy away from, the direct and intense reality of Jesus. Caravaggio captures both Thomas' and Jesus' humanity through the former's doubt and the latter's flesh. And this humanity, more than an understanding of God's spiritual holiness and 'otherness' as God, is what I need reminded of each day.

Regardless of my likes and dislikes of Caravaggio, I think it is important to also critique and highlight to Biblical truth (or heresy) found in The Incredulity of Saint Thomas. In one sense, I think that yes, Caravaggio's representation of Christ is true. Although we often choose to ignore or cannot grasp the equal amount of humanness as godliness in Christ, Caravaggio very much embraces this reality. Christ, just like those around Him in the painting, is a human being with human organs, hair, digits, emotions, and feelings. And though most humans do not glow in the light with such clean skin and beautiful fabric the way that Jesus does in The Incredulity of Saint Thomas, I commend the concurrent (maybe purposefully maybe not) of Christ's perfection inherent and connected with His humanity.