I made my wife smile the other day and that’s quite an achievement given the quality of my ‘dad’s jokes’. Sadly though, it wasn’t a joke just a simple question that caused her to laugh: “Am I a bit of a pessimist?” I asked and I can still see the broad grin on her face.

I have to admit that I can be a bit pessimistic at times although I wouldn’t suggest you act on Oscar Wilde’s advice, ‘Always borrow money from a pessimist, he won't expect it back’.

The apostle Thomas (or ‘Doubting Thomas as he is often described) was obviously a pessimist. We see this personality trait reflected in his reaction to Jesus’ proposal that they should visit their sick friend Lazarus in the village of Bethany for example. “Come along,” he said. “We might as well die with him.”

He behaved in the same way when he was told that Jesus had been raised from the dead. He simply refused to believe it although he did go so far as to say that he would if he could touch his resurrected body.

Pessimist as he was then Thomas was open to persuasion. That’s why I readily identify with him. I was a genuine doubter but thankfully I took a good look at the evidence and as a result I came to the same conclusion as the Biblical scholar who claims that the resurrection offers us the most complete and satisfying explanation for the rise of Christianity. In other words then, I am a ‘persuadable pessimist’.

On reflection I think you could say I am something of a ‘pessimistic optimist’ too because ever since I became convinced of the truth of the Easter story, I have been convinced that the church will never die. There are those who might say this is mere ‘blind faith’ of course but the latest survey of church life in England and Wales has given me the kind of reassurance Thomas enjoyed when Jesus appeared to him and encouraged him to touch his hands and his side.

You will find the statistics in an intriguingly entitled ‘The Quiet Revival’ report published by the Bible Society. It makes for encouraging reading because (and I quote) ‘The results of this thorough and robust study demonstrate that over the space of only six years, there has been a significant growth in the numbers of people going to church; Christians are practising their religion more intentionally; more young people are finding faith; more people are reading the Bible.’

Indeed, Chief Executive Officer Paul Williams goes so far as to claim that “the story told in this report is revolutionary in terms of the public assumptions about Christianity in England and Wales, and transformational in terms of how Christians think about themselves.” And if you doubt him all you have to do is take a look at the statistics for yourself.