April 23rd 2023. Third Sunday of Easter
GOSPEL: Luke 24:13-35
Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio
Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading ...
GOSPEL: Luke 24:13-35
Two of the disciples of Jesus were on their way to a village called Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem, and they were talking together about all that had happened. Now as they talked this over, Jesus himself came up and walked by their side; but something prevented them from recognising him. He said to them, ‘What matters are you discussing as you walk along?’ They stopped short, their faces downcast.
Then one of them, called Cleopas, answered him, ‘You must be the only person staying in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have been happening there these last few days’. ‘What things?’ he asked. ‘All about Jesus of Nazareth’ they answered ‘who proved he was a great prophet by the things he said and did in the sight of God and of the whole people; and how our chief priests and our leaders handed him over to be sentenced to death, and had him crucified. Our own hope had been that he would be the one to set Israel free. And this is not all: two whole days have gone by since it all happened; and some women from our group have astounded us: they went to the tomb in the early morning, and when they did not find the body, they came back to tell us they had seen a vision of angels who declared he was alive. Some of our friends went to the tomb and found everything exactly as the women had reported, but of him they saw nothing.’
Then he said to them, ‘You foolish men! So slow to believe the full message of the prophets! Was it not ordained that the Christ should suffer and so enter into his glory?’ Then, starting with Moses and going through all the prophets, he explained to them the passages throughout the scriptures that were about himself.
When they drew near to the village to which they were going, he made as if to go on; but they pressed him to stay with them. ‘It is nearly evening’ they said ‘and the day is almost over.’ So he went in to stay with them.
Now while he was with them at table, he took the bread and said the blessing; then he broke it and handed it to them. And their eyes were opened and they recognised him; but he had vanished from their sight.
Then they said to each other, ‘Did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained the scriptures to us?’
They set out that instant and returned to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven assembled together with their companions, who said to them, ‘Yes, it is true. The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.’ Then they told their story of what had happened on the road and how they had recognised him at the breaking of bread.
The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ
1. The Emmaus story is a paradigm for each of us of how to encounter the risen Lord!
This Gospel passage recounting the experience of the disciples on the road to Emmaus is a paradigm of an encounter with the Risen Lord. The disciples have a negative view on the historical events that have taken place. They abandon Jerusalem, the place of God’s promises, and head to Emmaus, an obscure and unknown town. Jesus is actually walking beside them, but they do not see him because their eyes are obstructed from doing so. In order for them to see properly, Jesus must work on their hearts and on their way of viewing things. It is interesting to note that these disciples already possess all the vital pieces of information that form the basis of the Christian belief in the resurrection! The empty tomb, the narrative of the women who saw the angels, the testimony of the apostles who verified the fact that Jesus was no longer in the tomb. Jesus challenges their interpretation with the word “fools!” This is a pretty strong rebuke from the Lord on their failure to understand the scriptures. The Old Testament does not only speak of the glory of the Messiah but also of his suffering. Jesus shows them that there is another perspective on things. How often we lose sight of the resurrection because we have fallen in love with a mistaken perspective and we end up in delusion and despair. We think the Lord will save us in a particular way, but his way of redeeming us is always different to what we expect.
2. Encounter with Jesus is something that changes the direction of our lives
When it comes to evening, they ask Jesus to remain with him. A question we can ask is why is Jesus recognized only at the moment of the breaking of the bread? And why does he disappear at that moment? The disciples are so changed by the encounter with him that they return to Jerusalem. They are enabled to do the exact opposite to what they had been doing previously. Their lives have been changed by the resurrected One and they have become witnesses. “Conversion” in fact means to walk in the other direction. Their hearts have been changed. In the same way, during the Eucharistic liturgy, we first have our hearts touched by the Scriptures and then we meet Christ in the breaking of the bread. The story of Emmaus is the story of every Eucharistic celebration.
3. Moments of suffering and crisis are actually moments to abandon ourselves to the resurrection
In every epoch, it is essential that we are liberated from our own illusions, our own interpretations of how Christ ought to save us, our own messianisms. Often, when we think everything has failed, it is really a new beginning, a decisive change. Today we must be ready to welcome the signs of providence in the difficulties we encounter as a Church. Similarly in our personal lives. Every moment of our lives, even moments of suffering, difficulty or crisis, are excellent points of departure. The route to glory is that of total abandonment into the hands of God, especially in the darkest and most incomprehensible times. Like the disciples on the road to Emmaus, let us allow ourselves to be redirected to Jerusalem, to return to the Church, to return to our own particular vocations. How often we tend to distance ourselves from these goods because we suffer from a negative and delusional interpretation of the events of our lives.
ALTERNATIVE HOMILY
The Gospel recounts the story of the disciples who meet Jesus on the road to Emmaus. At first, they do not believe in the resurrection and do not recognize Jesus. During their journey, they are transformed by their encounter with the risen Lord. This involves a transformation of their minds, their hearts and their senses. How does Jesus effect this transformation? First of all he challenges their ideas with a fairly offensive rebuke to the wrong ideas they now possess! He says, “Foolish men, slow to believe!” We must all allow Jesus to challenge our very poor knowledge. Knowledge is not just a collection of facts, but a synthesis of facts. These disciples already know the facts but interpret them in the same foolish way that we interpret most of the facts in our lives. Jesus leads these disciples through the Scriptures and shows them how the facts should really be understood. This leads to an interior transformation in the sentiments of the disciples. Originally their hearts were cold and immobile but now they start to burn within them. They arrive at Emmaus and invite Jesus to break bread with them. It is in concrete acts that our faith crystallizes. Faith can be very airy-fairy if it just exists at the level of our minds. At the breaking of the bread, their eyes are opened and they recognize Jesus. Interestingly, our senses are the last to be transformed. When we start to see things differently and our hearts begin to be changed, then we develop new eyes and see the world differently as well. What is the upshot of all of this transformation? The disciples change direction and head back to Jerusalem as witnesses of the resurrection! Do we think that we can encounter the Lord and keep going in the same old direction we were going in previously? No! If we truly encounter Jesus, then our minds, hearts and senses will be changed! The entire direction of our lives will be transfigured!
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