Acts 2:14,22-33; 1 Peter 1:17-21; Luke 24:13-35

The twelve Apostles are missing not only Jesus as their leader, but they are also missing Judas, the traitor. So, they are incomplete. They are only ‘Eleven’. Peter, who has also betrayed Jesus by denying his friendship and even placing a curse on Jesus has become the new leader of the disciples. He preaches to the same people who asked for Jesus to be crucified only a few days earlier.
Despite Roman guards, Jesus disappeared and the message about his Resurrection spreads like wildfire. The people are amazed and Peter takes this situation to connect Jesus with the prophets of the Scriptures the people know. The very revered king and prophet David himself had announced the coming of Jesus and was prophesying that neither would his body corrupt nor would he stay in his tomb. As Peter is proclaiming that Jesus is with God, he also acknowledges the third person of the Trinity: the Holy Spirit who has been sent to the people to keep them connected with the Father and the Son.

The disciples are free thanks to the interference of Gamaliel who convinced the Sanhedrin not to kill the disciples. They are preaching to the Jewish people. Their teachers, leaders and scribes were their spiritual home until now. However, once the people believe in the Resurrection of Jesus as their Saviour, they are distancing themselves from the belief of their ancestors. Jesus paid ransom with his own blood. He is the true Lamb of God.
From the connection of David to the unblemished Lamb of God, Jesus follows in the tradition of the known Scriptures of his time. Jesus knows the Scriptures and was already astonishing the scholars in the synagogue when he was only 12 years old.

We are in Year A of the Church Year, which is the Year of Matthew – and yet, we hear a passage from the Gospel according to Luke. This shows that this story is immensely important and unique. It refers to several events relating to the Passion and Resurrection. The account is about two disciples encountering Jesus on their way home from Jerusalem. We learn that one of the two is called Cleopas. We don’t know anything else about the other person. It is likely to have been his brother or wife as they seem to live together in Emmaus. Apparently, this name translates to “warm spring”. In the Northern Hemisphere, this story is told in springtime and through Jesus’ Resurrection, the people are filled with hope – hope of new life, springtime that leads to the warmer season. The fact that it is said that Emmaus is seven miles from Jerusalem gives it realism and an indication that the way was long enough to have a long conversation.

The two disciples don’t seem to be surprised that Jesus is suddenly walking with them, but they are rather surprised that he goes the same direction as they do without knowing what had just happened in Jerusalem. We often see pictures of the encounter where only three persons are depicted, but it might be that there were many people walking out of Jerusalem, and hence, the disciples weren’t surprised when Jesus was walking at their side.
When they tell Jesus about what had just happened, Jesus replies with the words “Foolish and slow of heart not to believe all the prophets had foretold.”.

Jesus himself draws the connection to the Scriptures. It has been foretold. Believe the prophets. It seems like he is telling them that what they thought was the story of the day was just exactly what was prophesied. So, why are you surprised?
The disciples are blind when it comes to connecting the accounts to the prophets – and, when they are mentioning the resurrected Jesus as a prophet, they are still blind and don’t realise that Jesus is walking with them.

From this point, Jesus takes over and teaches the disciples about the prophets in the Scriptures. He makes the connections from the first prophets all the way to himself. The disciples listen to him but still don’t recognise him.

Then, as they reach Emmaus and the day is coming to a close, Jesus is invited to stay with the couple. As they are having a meal together, Jesus “took the bread and said the blessing; then he broke it and handed it to them”. This is the moment that the disciples recognise him. As soon as they do, he disappears.

Jesus had told them about the Scriptures, connected the Scriptures to the Resurrection account, then he is invited to the table where he breaks the bread and blesses it with members of the community of faithful. Doesn’t this remind us of Mass?
The Scriptures preparing the path, followed by a meal of ‘thanksgiving’ (in Greek: Eucharist).
While we sing the Great Amen at this moment of Mass, the disciples at Emmaus said to each other:  ‘Did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained the scriptures to us?’
The account ends with the disciples going out and sharing their experience with others. At the end of Mass the priest says: “Ite, Misa est.” or “Go in Peace and announce the Gospel of the Lord”.

Jesus asked us to remember him when the bread is blessed and broken. Are our hearts also burning? Jesus sent us the Holy Spirit to give us hope and life – are we taking this positive energy into our lives and share it with others?

BM