BIBLE STUDY # 41
THIRD SUNDAY OF EASTER
May 8, 2011

Gospel Luke 24:13-35

That very day, the first day of the week,
two of Jesus’ disciples were going
to a village seven miles from Jerusalem called Emmaus,
and they were conversing about all the things that had occurred.
And it happened that while they were conversing and debating,
Jesus himself drew near and walked with them,
but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him.
He asked them,
“What are you discussing as you walk along?”
They stopped, looking downcast.
One of them, named Cleopas, said to him in reply,
“Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem
who does not know of the things
that have taken place there in these days?”
And he replied to them, “What sort of things?”
They said to him,
“The things that happened to Jesus the Nazarene,
who was a prophet mighty in deed and word
before God and all the people,
how our chief priests and rulers both handed him over
to a sentence of death and crucified him.
But we were hoping that he would be the one to redeem Israel;
and besides all this,
it is now the third day since this took place.
Some women from our group, however, have astounded us:
they were at the tomb early in the morning
and did not find his body;
they came back and reported
that they had indeed seen a vision of angels
who announced that he was alive.
Then some of those with us went to the tomb
and found things just as the women had described,
but him they did not see.”
And he said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are!
How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke!
Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things
and enter into his glory?”
Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets,
he interpreted to them what referred to him
in all the Scriptures.
As they approached the village to which they were going,
he gave the impression that he was going on farther.
But they urged him, “Stay with us,
for it is nearly evening and the day is almost over.”
So he went in to stay with them.
And it happened that, while he was with them at table,
he took bread, said the blessing,
broke it, and gave it to them.
With that their eyes were opened and they recognized him,
but he vanished from their sight.
Then they said to each other,
“Were not our hearts burning within us
while he spoke to us on the way and opened the Scriptures to us?”
So they set out at once and returned to Jerusalem
where they found gathered together
the eleven and those with them who were saying,
“The Lord has truly been raised and has appeared to Simon!”
Then the two recounted
what had taken place on the way
and how he was made known to them in the breaking of bread.

The Gospel of the Lord

Reflection

This second resurrection narrative in Luke’s gospel takes place on the same day Peter and the women visited the empty tomb, that is Easter Sunday. Two disciples, one named Cleopas and the other disciple without a name, are leaving Jerusalem and are on their way home to a village name Emmaus. A bit of trivia: there are 4 villages in modern day Israel that claim to be the real Emmaus.

They were disciples, but have turned their back on Jesus and are heading home, presumably to their former way of life. This passage reminds us of the resurrection appearance in John 21 when 7 of the apostles went fishing, symbolizing their return to their former way of life.

As they are heading home they are talking about all that happened the past 3 days. I’d bet they were gravely disappointed that Jesus didn’t live up to their expectations and wondering where their lives were headed now that Jesus was dead.

As they were walking along the road, Jesus drew near and began walking beside them, but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him. Not recognizing Jesus is a common thread running through the resurrection narratives. In this case I would ask if God prevents them from recognizing Jesus, or is it their lack of faith? Isn’t that true for us, too? Do we only see what we want to see, or expect to see? Or are we open to the workings of God in our life, to see the unexpected and to see with the eyes of faith? Like the early Christians in Luke’s community, do we fail to see the risen Lord in the midst of our own trial and tribulations? Are we the kind of people who only pray when we need something?

When Jesus asks them what they are discussing, they are astonished that he doesn’t know what happened over the weekend. They refer to Jesus as only a prophet mighty in word and deed, as contrasted with last week’s Gospel where Thomas calls Jesus “my Lord and my God”. Calling Jesus a prophet symbolizes a lack of understanding concerning Jesus identity and therefore a lack of faith.

They were hoping that Jesus was the messiah, but one of their own making. Most people believed that the messiah would be similar to King David, who was a political, military, and economic leader. No one suspected that the messiah would be like Jesus. There’s an old adage that goes like this: God made us in his image and likeness, and we have since returned the favor. We want to remake God into one that is easy for us to follow, instead of letting God remake us into a saint.

You can see here that these 2 disciples are just reporting the facts about the resurrection, but they really don’t believe it. They obviously didn’t believe the women, but they went to see for themselves. There was no statement of faith or disbelief, just a reporting the facts. There is no hint of any hope on the part of these 2 disciples. What a sad state of affairs and how bleak and dreary life is without Jesus.

Jesus then explains the scriptures to them and shows them and shows them how all these events are scripturally based. All that happened was according to God’s will. The disciples (conveniently?) forgot those passages in the Old Testament referring to the suffering Messiah. Isn’t it typical for people to pick and choose the parts of their faith that appeal most to them and conveniently forget the challenging parts?

When they get to Emmaus it is getting dark and Jesus indicates that he is going on farther, but he accepts their invitation to stay with them. The timing here is important. It was at sundown that the Christians met for the breaking of the bread.

Jesus assumes the role of host, takes the bread, blesses it, breaks it, and gives it to them, evoking memories of the Last Supper. It is in this act where they recognize the risen Jesus, who then disappears from their midst.

It is then that they realized their hearts were burning within them when he opened the scriptures to them. They immediately left for Jerusalem, symbolizing their return to faith and their commitment to discipleship.

Why did Luke include this story in his gospel? Remember, the gospels were written some decades after Jesus died, rose, and ascended. Each gospel was written to a particular community living in a specific time and place. Each gospel addresses issues in each respective community.

By the time of the writing of the gospel, about 50 years after Jesus, it seems that the church was struggling with faith in the absence of the second coming of Jesus, which many thought would happen in their lifetimes. It is a story about conversion and of hope.

We too sometimes struggle with our faith as we wait for Jesus to return. This story tells us how to keep going in life during good and bad times, during adversity and elation.

I don’t think we should look to God for answers, but for inspiration; God is not the answer – man, but the grace – man. He is the one who gives us courage in difficult times, and who rejoices with us is happy times. He is the one who dispels fear and meaninglessness, and gives us peace and hope.

I’ve often said that the bible is God’s owners manual. If you want to know how to operate a car at peak efficiency, read the owners manual. If you want to live at peak efficiency, read God’s owners manual. Let it inspire you, direct you, and set your hearts on fire with love.

Jesus also left us the sacrament of his body and blood in the Eucharist. I’m often confused when people say they can’t find God. What they mean, I think, is they can’t find God on their own terms; they can’t find the kind of God they want (a comfortable, easy God, usually). God should be relatively easy to find through the myriad ways we can connect to him.

When we actively, consciously and weekly participate at mass, we open ourselves up to be the receptacles of God’s grace that will change us and mold us. We will recognize Jesus in the breaking of the bread, and that will make all the difference in the world.


Fr. Phil