We had planned to visit Emmaus during our 2018 pilgrimage to the Holy Land, but due to inclement weather and a longer than planned stay at the site of the Transfiguration, the site was already closed while we were en route. Our “consolation” was lunch at an Elvis-themed diner just outside of Jerusalem. A good portion of our pilgrims had become tired of Mediterranean food, so this was a welcome deliverance as we ate burgers and fries.
I have been to the Holy Land twice now, and on both occasions, delays in our schedule meant we could not visit Emmaus. Most groups do not go there in the first place, and I later learned that there is no definitive record of where this village stood. We only know it was close enough for the disciples to walk there and still get back to Jerusalem that night to share their miraculous experience.
Most of us know the story. The two disciples were walking, and a stranger came near. Their heads were spinning as they were contemplating the events of the previous days, the arrest, trial, crucifixion of Jesus on Friday, and reports that women had seen a vision of angels on Sunday morning telling them “Jesus has been raised from the dead!” Their eyes were prevented from recognizing Jesus even after he began speaking with them. This resurrection appearance lasts the longest in all four Gospels. The journey takes a considerable amount of time as Jesus breaks open the Scriptures and helps them understand that the Messiah had to suffer, die, and rise again. When they arrive in Emmaus, the two disciples invite Jesus to share a meal with them. As he says the table prayers and breaks the bread, they recognize him and he vanishes.
Do you realize that when you approach the altar to receive the Blessed Sacrament that your eyes are prevented from recognizing Jesus? You make the same declaration of faith as Thomas (“My Lord and my God!”) and the Emmaus disciples who recognize Him in the breaking of the bread. This is the Eucharistic miracle, and you never need to miss it. Perhaps the parting words of the two disciples should be ours as well as we are dismissed at the end of Mass. Are not our hearts burning within us? And if not, why not? Fr. Gary
