3RD SUNDAY OF EASTER (YEAR A)

1st Reading            Acts 2:14,22-33

Psalm                       16:1-2, 5, 7-8, 9-10, 11 (R. 11a)

R:// "Lord, you will show us the path of life."

2nd Reading          1 Peter 1:17-21

Gospel                     Luke 24: 13-35

STAY WITH US, LORD (MANE NOBISCUM, DOMINE)

Friends, Peace and Goodness! Today is the 3rd Sunday of Easter (Year A). As a reminder, we shall be journeying through Easter in 7 weeks. Let us also remind ourselves that, traditionally, in the Catholic Church, April is dedicated to the Blessed Sacrament (Holy Eucharist) and the Holy Spirit. Let us dive then into the readings. 

Our first reading is from Acts 2:14, 22-33 and the Gospel is from Luke 24: 13-35. Let us focus on the Gospel and pay attention to a few details. 

By way of preliminary words, the Gospel passage under consideration is the story of the Emmaus encounter. Two disciples, Clopas and the other disciple, facing issues of understanding the resurrection, left the community in Jerusalem and are headed for Emmaus. On the road, they met a stranger who explained to them everything about the Christ. In the end, they encountered Christ in the breaking of the bread. In the Gospel according to Luke, there are three distinct resurrection appearances. The encounter on the road to Emmaus is one of them. We should also observe closely that the Gospels according to Luke and John stress the physical reality of Jesus in the sense of touching and eating. That has much to do with why we find Jesus working around food and even possibly touched in the Gospel of today. 

The first thing we should pay attention to is the movement. That might appear benign, but I suggest it forms a major issue worth reflection on. They moved from Jerusalem to Emmaus. What is in Jerusalem? Rightly, it is the Temple, which represents the visible presence of God. Jerusalem is also the place of the passion and the resurrection. The movement away from Jerusalem suggests that they are moving away from the presence of God and even into an area of lesser evidence. If they are to understand the Resurrection, then the right place to be is Jerusalem. A movement away from the area of clear evidence means that belief and understanding may never come. If we need to understand the Resurrection and its relevance in our lives, the evidence lies right in God's presence, in worship. We cannot move away worship and expect to understand the resurrected Jesus. 

The second detail we should observe is the on-road conversation between the two disciples. The two men were actually "talking together about the things that had happened" (Lk. 24: 14). The Greek word used to describe this action and used in the text is "ὡμίλουν" (Homiloun). That word carries with it the nuance of conversing and entering into discussion with another in a bid to get an understanding of an issue. Here lies two disciples trying to understand, yet the sources they are using are as confused as themselves. The source is themselves. There is less chance of making a headway. It will be better for another person or another source to clarify their misunderstanding. Jesus comes in. Sometimes, we deepen our problems and confusions by resorting to ineffective means of clarifying our doubts. However, God does not abandon us in our doubts and perplexities. He walks along with us, making us speak what we know and clarifies them for us. The issue also concerns accommodation. Being accommodating and welcoming reliefs us of certain pains. However, it is one thing to be accommodating, and another thing to be open to speak. Even on the road away from the centre of evidence, Jesus can come to you. Yet, he requires you to speak forth your point (s) of doubts. He will take it from there.

The third detail is the content of the evidence that Jesus gave. He first spoke to them. In speaking to them about all that was written about him in the law and the prophets, setting the stage for and later appreciation and winning back their faith. Secondly, he broke bread and they recognised him there. Why these two? These two, especially, eating was one, if not the last, of the major ceremonies of Jesus with his disciples before he died. That was the last Supper. In fact, the same verbs the author of the Gospel according to Luke used during the Last Supper appear when they sat at table to eat. Jesus TOOK, BLESS, BROKE, and GAVE bread. Their eyes opened and they saw the evidence of the Resurrection themselves. 

I think these three details can help our reflections on this 3rd Sunday of Easter (Year A).

Pax et Bonum