Third Sunday of Easter
April 30
Reading 1ACTS 2:14, 22-33
Responsorial PsalmPS 16:1-2, 5, 7-8, 9-10, 11
- (11a) Lord, you will show us the path of life.
R. Alleluia.
Reading 21 PT 1:17-21
AlleluiaCF. LK 24:32
GospelLK 24:13-35
Homily— April 29 & 30, 2017
This Gospel reading is one of my favorites, so much so, that I have chosen it for my own Funeral Mass.I see my life as a journey and except for my first nineteen years when I lived on the farm outside of Cascade most of my assignments have been six years or less and then I was “on the road again”.
I see Jesus revealing self to us through the Word and through the Eucharist, the breaking of the bread. We have two disciples walking the seven miles from Jerusalem to Emmaus and discussing all that had happened along the way. Some suggest that it was a man and a woman. I think it was two men as it then contrasts more effectively with the women who announced that Jesus body was missing and that they had a vision of angels telling them that Jesus was alive. Besides a woman would have recognized Jesus!
These disciples were walking from Jerusalem to Emmaus which would have taken them about two hours or more and they encounter a stranger who asks them what they are talking about. They look downcast because they had such high hopes that Jesus would be their Savior but he was crucified and buried.They share their hopes about Jesus and that the women had found an empty tomb and the Apostles went to see for themselves and found things just as the women had said. The tomb was empty. They had not yet understood that Jesus would rise from the dead.
As they walked Jesus then explained the Old Testament to them as he explained the passages that referred to him. When they arrived at Emmaus Jesus gave the impression that he was going on farther and as it was getting late in the day they invited Jesus to stay with them. They offered him hospitality. As they sat around the table eating Jesus took bread and blessed it and broke it and gave it to them It was at that moment they recognized that it was Jesus, alive, and then Jesus disappears. As they reflect on what had just happened they realize that as he explained the scriptures to them that their hearts were burning within them. I remember that some of the classes that I had in seminary on the Bible were like that for me as the professor explained the multiple meanings of a word or phrase that would give me a deeper insight into the scripture passage.
The disciples were now so excited about having seen Jesus and realizing that he is alive they make the seven mile journey back to Jerusalem to share their good news with the other disciples. When they arrive they find that the other disciples have seen Jesus alive too and they share what had happened to them.Imagine the excitement among the disciples.
The two disciples experienced Jesus by entering into a dialogue with him as they walked. By offering hospitality to Jesus they were blessed with Jesus revelation of who he was as he blessed and broke bread with them.
I would like to recommend that you take a walk and walk with someone with whom you can share faith. It might be a walk around the block, or you could go out to Swiss Valley or to the Mines of Spain or maybe the River Walk. You might find the person next to you is Jesus for you or you may be Jesus for them. Your heart might burn with God’s love as you share faith. This could be a healthy activity for your body as well as for your mind and for your soul.