3rd Sunday of Easter
(Sunday 30th April 2017)
Stay with us – (Luke 24:13-35)
The Gospel for this Sunday, the third Sunday of Easter, is the famous account of the disciples meeting Jesus on the road to Emmaus. The first thing that strikes us in this Gospel passage is how downhearted and dejected the disciples are. We hear of this dejection when they say they had hoped in Him. They are speaking hear in the past, how they had hoped, how they had believed, how they had followed Him, and now it all seems to be over. This is what causes them great sadness. They are joined then on the road by the Risen Jesus and they fail to recognise Him.
Historically speaking, the locality of Emmaus has not yet been identified with certainty. Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI says that this can mean that it represents every place. The road that leads to this place is the road travelled by every Christian. The Risen Jesus makes Himself the traveling companion to all peoples as we journey on our way. He is the one who is always with us no matter what we have to face in life. No matter what sadness or dejection we face like the disciples on the road, the Risen Jesus travels with us too on our journey.
There are times when each one of us can feel this sadness or dejection. We can often ask ourselves why it seems like the Lord is not listening to me. But like the disciples on the road to Emmaus, this time can be a time of learning and maturing in our belief in God. It can be a time where we allow the Lord to walk with us on our journey and let Him speak to us in the Scriptures and give of Himself to us in the Eucharist. Jesus longs for us today to listen to His Word and for us to be nourished by His Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity in the Eucharist. This is what we do when we come to Mass, we listen to God’s Word and receive the Body of Christ as our food for our journey. Never doubt the Lord’s presence in your life. He is always with us and longs for us to say to Him, like the disciples on the road said, “Stay with us.” Jesus in the Gospel makes as if to go on. He never forces Himself on us in our lives, but longs for us to say to Him: “Stay with us.”
Fr. Eoin Casey O.P.