“RISEN WITH CHRIST”
Easter Reflections
Sunday, 30thApril 2017.
Third Week of Easter
Acts 2: 14, 22-33;
Ps 15: 1-2, 5,7-11;
1 Pet 1: 17-21;
Lk 24: 13-35.
ENCOUNTERING THE RISEN JESUS IN OUR LIVES
In Asia Minor in 80-90 AD, almost all the witnesses of the Risen Lord had disappeared. The Christians (third generation) are asking themselves: will it be possible for us to meet the Lord? How to testify that he is alive if we have never seen him with our eyes, nor touched with our hands, and never sat at table with him? Would we be led to believe just from what others have told us? Christians aspired to see Jesus.
Luke’s Emmaus story may have been a response to the aspirations and expectations of these Christians. One of the disciples was named Cleopas (a very well-known figure in the early church because he was the brother of Joseph, the “father” of the Lord) and the other is unnamed. Luke may have done this, to invite the reader to be the other disciple. The story is an invitation to go with Cleopas along the path that leads to recognizing the risen Christ, present where two are gathered in his name.
The two disciples are sad: they had seen the collapse of their dreams. They expected a glorious Messiah, a mighty and triumphant king but found themselves in front of a loser. The rabbis taught that the Messiah would have lived a thousand years, Jesus instead was dead. They resigned in the face of an inevitable reality, forced to admit that the new world announced by Jesus probably never come true. Without faith in the resurrection, the defeats are defeats, life ends with death, and is a senseless tragedy.
The two disciples of Emmaus did not have the slightest doubt that their ideas about the triumphant messiah could be wrong. They were stubbornly clinging to tradition. They were impervious to the surprises and novelties of God. Jesus does not abandon the people who choose the roads that lead to sadness. He becomes their companion in the journey. The appearance of Jesus to two of His disciples is intriguing and fascinating. Jesus “interpreted to them what referred to him in all the Scriptures.” With that, these disciples realized that this man with whom they were speaking had incredible wisdom and understanding, so they invited Him to stay with them. Jesus stayed and sat down with them in their home. When they were at table, he “took the bread, said a blessing, broke it, and gave each a piece”. The eyes of the disciples opened and recognize the Risen Christ. The disciples, as soon as they recognized the Lord, rush to announce their discovery to their brothers and sisters and with them proclaim their faith: “The Lord is truly risen.”
The story of the disciples of Emmaus is repeated each day at the Holy Eucharistic Liturgy (Holy Mass). It begins with the entrance of the celebrant, then the Liturgy of the Word with the homily, finally, “the breaking of bread.”Only at the time of Eucharistic communion our eyes open and we realize that the Risen One is in their midst. Without the Word, we cannot come to discover the Lord in the Eucharistic bread. As the liturgy ends with the concluding hymn, we are filled with joy and go forth to our brothers and sisters and friends and share the joy of the Risen Lord.
The Holy Mass is our Emmaus journey. We must commit ourselves to seeing Jesus, to recognizing Him and to adoring Him. We must discover the resurrected presence of Jesus all around us. He is here with us right now, loving us, speaking to us, and calling us to love Him. Look for Him and listen to His voice. We will be surprised how the Risen Lord makes us travel through the Scriptures, reveal himself and bring peace to our sadness and to our troubled hearts.
Prayer: Lord, thank You for loving me so much that You are always with me. Give me the eyes of faith to encounter you in the Holy Scriptures and to see You present in the Most Holy Eucharist. Help me to discern Your presence in every ordinary event of my day. I love You, dear Lord. Jesus, I trust in You. Amen.