3rd Sunday of Easter (A); April 23, 2023

Acts 2:14,22-33. Ps 16. 1 Pt 1:17-21. Lk 24:13-35

Deacon Jim McFadden

Why was it so difficult for the two disciples to recognize the Risen Lord? Jesus’ death scattered his disciples and shattered their hopes and dreams. Previously, they had been so full of hope and enthusiasm; they were convinced that the carpenter from Nazareth was the one who was going to redeem Israel in a way similar that King David once did, but on a grander scale. Jesus, whom they entrusted their hopes, indeed, their very lives, was the one who would do battle with their adversaries. He would surely manifest his power, after a long thirty year period of concealment and preparation. This is what they were expecting. And, it came crashing down as he hung on the Cross. They didn’t recognize him because they believed he was finished; he wasn’t coming back.

Getting back to the story, as the two men were walking, trying to get as far away from Jerusalem as they could, just imagine how heavy their disappointment was, how much sadness gripped their hearts, and how motivated they were to leave the bitterness behind in the event on Calvary which ended so brutally bad. They couldn’t get out of Jerusalem quick enough.

These two pilgrims had been nurturing a unique aspiration, that Jesus was the fulfillment of the Messianic hope which Israel had been waiting for centuries. Now, their hope was falling into pieces. The Cross on Calvary was the most in- your-face, unequivocal sign of a defeat that just seemed so permanent. Here was the Davidic Warrior who was utterly defenseless in the hands of violent people, unable to offer any kind of resistance to the raw assault of evil.

So, here on this Sunday morning, these two men with their tails between their legs are fleeing from Jerusalem so that they wouldn’t meet the same fate. When they reflected upon the events of Jesus’ Passion terminating when the stone was rolled across the tomb, their hopes for liberation instead were transformed into the most painful day of their lives. They left Jerusalem to go elsewhere, perhaps they could find a quiet respite in the village of Emmaus. They probably looked like two people who were desperately trying to erase a bitter memory. If Emmaus had anything comparable to a bar, they would go there to drown their sorrows. So, here they are, on the road walking in bitter sadness. What soon transpires will become so important for not only them, but it will be a pivotal moment in the history of the Church.

Under the master story-telling of Luke, Jesus’ encounter with the two men appears to happen just out of the blue—as if they just ran into each other. It seems to be one of those chance meetings that happen in which one’s life is forever changed. The two men are walking along, deep in thought, and a stranger comes up alongside of them. There’s Jesus, but they are not able to recognize him. Rather than reveal himself in some grand gesture, he gradually reveals himself through a conversation which will be therapeutic. They are in the presence of the Divine Physician who will heal them and restore their hope.

Notice what Jesus does: he asks them and question, then he listens. Even though he knows the reason for their disappointment, he gives them the time to name and articulate their pain, disappointment, and bitterness. Out of the cold and windy day that clouds their mind, and as fragile as Jesus’ presence seems to be (they don’t recognize him!), he has chosen that place, that moment we utterly disdain: emptiness and abandonment.

Aren’t we a lot like the those two disciples? How many times have we had ambitious hopes and dreams shattered?   How many times have we felt that we were so close to realizing happiness only to find ourselves knocked to the ground, disappointed, disillusioned. But, Jesus walks with people exactly in those circumstances just as he accompanies us during the pain, bewilderment, and crushing loss of the pandemic. Jesus walks with all people who, discouraged, walk with their heads hung low. And, walking with them in a discreet manner, he is able to restore hope. How does it do it?

Jesus speaks to them, above all through the Scriptures. Those who take up the Bible as part of their daily conversation with the Divine, will not encounter Super-Heroes, fierce campaigns of conquest in which the Good Guys always come up on top. No, true hope never emerges that easily. It always emerges from those who are crushed by circumstances, who experience oppression and marginalization. In short, hope never comes cheaply. It knows defeat. God does not come to us in a dramatic fashion accept in rare occasions (cf. Saul on his way to Damascus). Rather, he usually reveals himself on a cold and windy day that obscures his presence; he seems to appear to us in those places that we all distain.

Once Jesus unpacked the meaning of the Scriptures, he then repeats a gesture that happens at every Holy Mass. He takes bread, blesses it, breaks it and gives it. 

That’s it! Throughout all of history that’s how God seems to operate which are revealed in these simple gestures. That’s what is contained in every Eucharist and is what the Church, which is Jesus’ mystical Body, should be. Jesus takes us, blesses us, “breaks” our life—because there is no love without surrender and sacrifice—and offers it to others; he offers himself to everyone.

Brothers and sisters, we all have had challenging and difficult moments, dark moments in which we walk in darkness and sadness. We’re pensive trying to make sense what’s happening to us. Our horizons seem bleak without hope. And, that’s where Jesus appears. He is always beside us to give us hope, to warm our hearts and to say: “Go ahead, go forward. Don’t be afraid. I am with you. Go ahead!”

The secret of the Road to Emmaus is simply this: despite the appearances to the contrary, we continue to be loved by God and God will never stop loving us. Never! God will always walk with us, always! Even in the most painful moments, even in the worst moment, even in the moments we know defeat. That is where the Lord is. And this is our hope. Let us go forward in the midst of this uncertainty knowing that Jesus is among us. Let us always know that he is beside us and walks with us. Always! Amen.