St Thomas’ tactile visionary experiences from a neurophenomenological perspective
Thomas KL Vaidyan
Stellenbosch Theological Journal September 23, 2026 DOI: 10.17570/stj.2026.vn1.a10 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that Thomas the Apostle's post-resurrection experience of seeing, hearing, and touching Jesus can be explained as a natural phenomenon produced by neural processes embedded in bodily movement, reaction, and cultural environment, and compares it to hallucinations in cognitivism and synaesthetic perception in physiology and psychology. |
Abstract
A neurophenomenological perspective postulates the aspects of perception and cognition to understand visionary experiences. St Thomas’ immediate reaction when he heard about other disciples’ visions of Jesus was not to believe it until he put his finger on the wounds of Jesus when crucified, suffered bleeding and died. After a week, his experiences of seeing, hearing and touching Jesus in a locked room after his crucifixion, death and resurrection are investigated here as natural phenomena due to certain neural processes. The neuronal functions are embedded in the constant interaction of bodily movement, reaction and influences of the cultural environment, resulting in kinaesthetic, tactile and visual perceptions. The explanations in neurophenomenology add value to them as natural phenomena. I compare these with hallucinations in cognitivism and synaesthetic perceptions in physiology and psychology, where sensory information through multiple sensory pathways simultaneously brings experiences from more than one sense.