Lk. 24: 13-35
“You are not on a journey to God; you are on a journey with God.” (Steve Maraboli)
In today’s gospel, we meditate on the Emmaus journey of the disciples. We need to understand that even though the disciples abandoned Jesus, he never abandoned them. We see Jesus living out his true identity as Emmanuel, God with us. Having witnessed his tragic death on the cross, the disciples lost all their hope and dreams about Jesus being the Messiah. Moving away from Jerusalem depicts the intensity of their disappointment that they had undergone because they believed that in Jerusalem he would gather a powerful army to fight against the Romans and reestablish the throne of King David. Added to that, they had heard about the misplacement of mortal remains of Jesus and news connected to his resurrection, etc. They might have thought that everything was over with his death. If news spreads again concerning his resurrection, Jewish leaders will haunt his disciples and destroy them. Therefore, they wanted to escape this tense situation and stay calm in Emmaus.
However, Jesus never abandoned them. He walks with them. It is enlightening to note that Jesus didn’t reveal his true identity in the beginning of their encounter. He could have very well revealed himself in the beginning itself and given them his piece of mind for not recognizing him or understanding his teachings. At that juncture, disciples were in need of a listener with whom they could share everything. Therefore, Jesus listens to their grievances and disappointments with great patience.
Once their sharing is over, Jesus begins. Jesus uses hard words to speak about their inability to understand him. Then he patiently explains all that was written about him in the scriptures, such as the prophecies concerning him, and makes them understand that his crucifixion and death were inevitable for the salvation of humankind. When the day was about to conclude, the disciples invited him to stay with them. While breaking the bread, their eyes were opened, and they recognized him immediately. We could consider this as the first Holy Eucharistic celebration after his resurrection. From now on, all those who follow him will experience his presence in the Holy Eucharist. The disciples realize the transformation that they underwent. They started the journey with a heavy heart, saddened by sorrow and disappointment. Now their hearts are renewed with new zeal and hope. They get back to Jerusalem, share their Christ experience with other disciples, and convince everyone that Jesus has risen.
As we reflect the Emmaus experience of the disciples let us reflect on our own life journey. When we encountered similar situations wherein we lost all our hope, we too might have experienced the presence of the Lord through the instrumentality of a stranger, or a friend, or a relative, or a sibling etc. Let us ask the Lord to bless us with eyes of faith so that we may continue to recognize Jesus, the Emmanuel, who walks with us in our life journey…