The Emmaus Story

Today, we read of the famous Emmaus story in Luke 24:13-35. Simply put, two disillusioned disciples returned to their home town Emmaus from Jerusalem on Easter Sunday. Jesus had been crucified and buried on the previous Friday. Although they heard rumours of the disappearance of Jesus' corpse and visions of angels, their hope to rid themselves of Roman occupation had been smashed. All they could do was to return to their life before hearing about Jesus. Throughout the journey, Jesus accompanied them, interpreting to them the teaching of the Torah and prophets about the Suffering Messiah. Throughout the journey, they failed to recognize Jesus. Arriving Emmaus, they invited Jesus to dinner. At table, Jesus took the bread, blessed and gave them. Only then did their eyes open and recognize Jesus. Then Jesus vanished (Luke 24:30-31). There are a lot of things we can learn from this story. Dr. Francis Chan of the Religious and Moral Education Centre (RME) run by the Catholic Education Office (CEO) actively promotes an experiential teaching method based on the lessons drawn from this story.

In theological term, God is omnipresent, meaning God is present everywhere. He is not limited spatially. We can even boldly claim that He penetrates every available space in the universe. Yet, God is obviously absent and nowhere to be found. We cannot do any experiments to demonstrate His existence. Otherwise, everyone has already believed in Him. Why? I think the Emmaus story has told us the answer. The disciples were not able to recognize Jesus because they had a preconceived idea of who he was.
But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel (Luke 24:21a).
For them, Jesus was a preacher from Nazareth, a half pagan little town in the north. With his mighty words and deeds, Jesus was able to show them that he was sent by God. But they wanted liberation, not from the bondage of sins, but the Roman bondage. They missed the true mission of Jesus. Similarly, we expect a relationship with God different from what God expects from such a relationship. We Christians think that we have established a relationship with God Almighty but most likely, we have only established a relationship with a god we ourselves create. We miss the one true God. Christians, where can you find your God?
After the disappearance of Jesus, the two disciples reflected on their experience.
They said to each other, "Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the scriptures?" (Luke 24:32)
The scriptures! Without any knowledge of the scriptures, their hearts would not burn when Jesus spoke to them. They would not know what Jesus was talking about. Our knowledge of the Bible may not be perfect. Yet, the Holy Spirit would enlighten us. But first of all, study the Bible. Quiet your heart. Let the word of God speaks to you. When our hearts are ready, we will be able to see God.
The disciples recognized Jesus when he performed the same gestures he did in the feeding miracles. Had the disciples been present at the Last Supper, they would surely have recognized that Jesus was giving them the Holy Eucharist. Yes, in worship and in sacraments, we will be able to encounter the risen Lord again and again. Christians, don't be lazy. Give no excuses not to attend Masses and receive the Holy Eucharist. The sweet Jesus has further condescended himself into a slice of bread, unable to move, waiting patiently for us to receive him in our heart. Such is a sign of great love and sacrifice. Before this invitation, what better response do we have than to receive him humbly, desiring a total union with him?

My sweet Jesus, I thank Luke for telling us this Emmaus story. He has shown us unmistakably that You love us. You are willing to accompany us on our journey. You want to enlighten us, driving out all our hesitations, doubts and darkness. May we be nourished by Your words and sacraments so that our feet will be strengthened to continue our journey home. Amen.