Posted on 04/06/2008 8:52:53 AM PDT by big'ol_freeper
Benedict XVI emphasises that "today" we can meet the risen Jesus in the Eucharistic celebration, at the table of the Word and of the Body and Blood of Christ. A greeting for participants at the first Congress of Divine Mercy, which concluded this morning, and an invitation to be witnesses in the world to the Mercy of God, "the spring of hope for every man".
The evangelical account of the "dejected" and "disappointed" disciples in Emmaus is a message for all Christians: through their encounter with the risen Jesus, they are able to return to a "robust faith" that "is nourished not with human ideas, but with the Word of God and the Eucharist". This is the commentary of Benedict XVI on the Gospel of this Sunday - the third Sunday of Easter - in which the story is told (cf. Lk. 24:13-35) "of two followers of Christ who, on the day following Saturday, meaning the third day after his death, sad and downcast left Jerusalem and headed toward a nearby village called Emmaus. Along the road, the risen Jesus came up beside them, but they did not recognise him. Sensing that they were dejected, he explained, on the basis of the Scriptures, that the Messiah had to suffer and die in order to enter his glory. He then entered a house together with them, sat at table, blessed the bread and broke it, and at that point they recognised him, but he disappeared, leaving them full of amazement before that broken bread, the new sign of his presence. And the two immediately returned to Jerusalem and told what had happened to the other disciples".
Archaeologists in the Holy Land have not yet precisely identified this location, and there are at least three hypotheses. For the pope, this has an evocative value: in reality, Emmaus is "every place, the road that leads there is the journey of each Christian, and moreover of each man. The risen Jesus accompanies us on our journey, on our road, to rekindle within our hearts the warmth of faith and hope, and to break the bread of eternal life".
The pontiff comments on the words used by one of the disciples ("We were hoping . . ."), the manifestation of a faith in disappointment and crisis: "This verb in the past tense says everything: we believed, we followed, we hoped . . . but now it's all over. Even Jesus of Nazareth, who had shown himself to be a prophet mighty in deed and word, even he failed, and we were left disappointed. Who has not experienced a moment like this in his life? Sometimes faith itself enters into crisis, because of negative experiences that make us feel abandoned and betrayed even by the Lord".
But the story of Emmaus suggests instead that it is possible to encounter the risen Jesus "still today". "Still today", the pope added, departing from his prepared remarks, "Jesus speaks to us in the Scripture; still today Jesus gives us his Body and his Blood". "The encounter with the Risen Christ", he continues, "gives us a more profound and authentic faith, one tempered, so to speak, in the fire of the paschal event, a faith that is robust because it is nourished not with human ideas, but with the Word of God and the Eucharist".
"This stupendous text of the Gospel", Benedict XVI concludes, "already contains the structure of the Holy Mass: in the first part, the listening to the Word of God through the sacred Scriptures; in the second the Eucharistic liturgy and communion with Christ, present in the Sacrament of his Body and Blood. By nourishing ourselves at this twofold meal, the Church constantly builds itself up and renews itself day by day in faith, hope, and charity. Through the intercession of Mary Most Holy, let us pray that every Christian and every community, reliving the experience of the disciples in Emmaus, may rediscover the grace of the transforming encounter with the risen Lord".
After the prayer of the Regina Caeli, the pope again remembered the organisers of the first World Congress of Divine Mercy, concluded today with a Mass in the basilica of St Peter's, presided over by Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, archbishop of Vienna. "To all the participants", the pope added, "I extend my cordial greeting, which now becomes an assignment: go and be witnesses of the mercy of God, the spring of hope for every man and for the entire world. Made the risen Lord be with you always!".
Amen.
This reading from the Gospel is one of many proofs of the Eucharist and the mission of the Church.
Those who exclude themselves from the joy of knowing Christ in the Eucharist only know Him in a limited, imperfect way.
Will we recognize Christ on our Road to Emmaus? Our Road of Life?
At my parish this morning that was the theme of father’s sermon.
I would say we all miss opportunities to recognize Christ on our Road to Emmaus for various reasons.
Those who do know recognize him “in the breaking of the bread” certainly miss the opportunity.
Notice that it says in the Gospel that Christ vanished from their sight. Not from the room.
Where did he go if He is still in the room.
Into the bread, of course.
This story is a representation of the early Church Masses.
The greeting,
That very day, the first day of the week,
two of Jesus’ disciples were going
to a village seven miles from Jerusalem called Emmaus,
and they were conversing about all the things that had occurred. And it happened that while they were conversing and debating, Jesus himself drew near and walked with them,
but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him.
(And Christ really is the only one who knows what happened!)
The introduction/Gospel acclaimation:
And he replied to them, “What sort of things?”
“And he said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are!
How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke!
Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?”
The Liturgy of the Word:
Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets,
he interpreted to them what referred to him
in all the Scriptures.
The Offertory/Presentation of Gifts:
As they approached the village to which they were going,
he gave the impression that he was going on farther.
But they urged him, “Stay with us,
for it is nearly evening and the day is almost over.”
So he went in to stay with them.
The Eucharist:
And it happened that, while he was with them at table,
he took bread, said the blessing,
broke it, and gave it to them.
With that their eyes were opened and they recognized him,
but he vanished from their sight.
The Commission and Closing Prayer:
Then they said to each other,
“Were not our hearts burning within us
while he spoke to us on the way and opened the Scriptures to us?”
So they set out at once and returned to Jerusalem
where they found gathered together
the eleven and those with them who were saying,
“The Lord has truly been raised and has appeared to Simon!”
Then the two recounted
what had taken place on the way
and how he was made known to them in the breaking of bread.
This was our priest’s homily this weekend. Fabulous, isn’t it?
Awesome... and eye-opening!
I can’t remember exactly how he ended it, but I believe it was something to do with the Commissioning.
“Are your hearts burning inside you?”
A great U-turn Gospel, isn’t it?
From the two disciples feeling so downcast at the beginning to wanting to spread the Good News at the end!
It is my favorite Gospel and will be the Gospel at my funeral Mass.
It is one of my favorite readings also.
Abouna delivered one of his masterful homilies this morning. He noted that when our Lord blessed and broke the bread at the Passover meal, the Apostles listened, heard but did not fully grasp His intentions. Along the 7 mile journey to Emmaus, the two disciples discussed the events that took place in Jerusalem just a few days earlier and are surprised that this individual is not aware of them. Beginning with Moses and the prophets, He then interprets Scripture to show them every passage that referred to Him. Their eyes were still closed. It is in the breaking of the bread that they finally recognized Him. This is now the 2nd time He has appeared and only been recognized by the breaking of the bread; the other time was at the Sea of Tiberius.
EWTN provided full coverage of the closing Mass for the First Congress on the Divine Mercy. Cardinal Schonborn officiated. St. Peter's Square was packed and in their midst was a life sized image of the Divine Mercy.
Sounds like a wonderful homily.
The Gospel is absolutely CLEAR:
Jesus therefore said to them,
“Most assuredly I tell you,
unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood,
you don’t have life in yourselves.
He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life,
and I will raise him up at the last day.
For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.
He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me, and I in him.”
Without the Eucharist you can’t recognize Jesus and you stay on the Road to Emmaus instead of the road back to Jerusalem.
One other thing... notice in the Gospel text that they heard Sacred Scripture and their hearts were on fire, but only when they participated in the Eucharist where their eyes open.
We see many who don’t believe in the Eucharist whose hearts are on fire because of the Sacred Scripture but who’s eyes are never opened to recognize Christ because they reject Him in the Eucharist.
**We see many who don’t believe in the Eucharist whose hearts are on fire because of the Sacred Scripture but who’s eyes are never opened to recognize Christ because they reject Him in the Eucharist.**
Absolutely true. A friend and I are often touched so by the homily. But it leads directly into the Consecration of the Bread and Wine into the Body and Blood of Christ.
By that time, we look at each other, and we both have tears running down our faces. Not always............but quite often. It is a wonderful state to be in. Or perhaps the tears will come when I receive the host on my tongue and the Holy Blood; I wonder what the EMHC thinks, but I really don’t dwell on it. I just thank Jesus for coming to me in this particular way!
"...why am I a daily communicant, Alex?"
I must have had one too many beers, because I have no idea what you just said.
Think Jeapordy.
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