05-04-2014, 03:14 PM
CHRIST THE BREAD OF LIFE WALKS WITH US IN OUR JOURNEY
SCRIPTURE READINGS: ACTS 2:14.22-33; 1 PETER 1:17-21; LK 24:13-35
http://www.universalis.com/20140504/mass.htm
Like the disciples traveling along the road to Emmaus, we too are pilgrims along the way. Life indeed is but a long pilgrimage, since to be a pilgrim is to walk nearer to God who is the goal of our life. But like them, each time we think we are nearer to our goal, nearer to happiness in life, nearer in solving our problems; new challenges and new trials lie ahead of us so that the road seems further than ever. This makes life rather frustrating and disappointing.
This was what happened to the disciples at Emmaus. They thought they were so near to their goal of liberation. “Jesus of Nazareth”, they said “proved himself to be a great prophet by the things he said and did” and “our own hope had been that he would be the one to set Israel free.” Hence, we can understand why they were walking away from Jerusalem, supposedly to the place of Hope and Glory, both politically and religiously, as all their hopes were now dashed.
We too walk the road to Emmaus every now and then in our lives. Our lives are full of unrealized expectations and disappointments. We are full of uncertainty about Jesus, disenchanted with His Church because of the presence of scandal and sin, especially among church leaders; disillusioned with our community, betrayed by our family, loved ones and friends; and disappointed with ourselves, with our career and our life.
In such a state of affairs, who can blame us for losing heart? In all appearances Christ, for us, is certainly not risen! That is why some of us cannot accept that Jesus is risen and we have new life, because all we see is a life that is still the same as before. Sin is not yet conquered. All we see are injustices, ingratitude and apathy around us. Suffering abounds. The liturgy and the Church seem irrelevant. Prayers do not seem to change anyone or the situation. People continue to be enslaved to themselves or other idols in their lives.
It appears that God has lost the battle and all that is said about Jesus and His saving by His death and resurrection is just a myth. In truth, a number of skeptics and disillusioned Catholics have concluded that Christ’s resurrection is either not real or that He has died in vain, since Christians are still not risen even as they proclaim that Christ their master and Lord is risen. Again, if we doubt the resurrection, then we are simply reacting the same way the disciples did to the news that Jesus was risen.
Why is it that, like the disciples initially, we are unable to recognize the Risen Lord? The gospel says, “something prevented them from recognising him.” What is this something that hinders us from seeing the Risen Lord?
It is because our eyes are not focused on Jesus but on ourselves and our miseries. Yes, their eyes were downcast. They were not looking heavenward but to the earth. Thus when the living Lord appeared to them (and to us), dead men and women, how could they see Him? Understandably, when we are feeling our pain and looking at our sorrows, we can only sympathize with ourselves. If we are suffering from a toothache, what else can we think of except the toothache? So in the face of sufferings, we can only feel sorry for ourselves, overwhelmed by our failures in life, just as the disciples were in their shattered dreams and hopes as a result of Jesus’ death on the cross. Not only are our hopes dead, but so is our heart! We are unable to see beyond ourselves and our pain.
In such a state, like the disciples, Jesus too reprimands us saying, “You foolish men! So slow to believe the full message of the prophets! Was it not ordained that the Christ should suffer and so enter into his glory?” Jesus Himself has carried that cross for us and before us. He has gone through the depths of hell and suffering on our behalf since He was a man like us in all things except sin. He carried all our sins in His body on the cross. He has walked the talk.
The truth is that there is no short cut to the resurrection. It is through our sufferings that we come to discover ourselves and the plan of God, albeit in an unpleasant way. It is through our sufferings in life, whether in relationships or in our life struggles, that we come to know our true selves, the meaning of fidelity, honesty, our sins, the sins of the world and in the midst of it, the compassion and love of God that comes to us in unexpected ways. It is through our failures in life that we learn success. Indeed, the crosses in life must not be seen as defeat. It is foolhardy and an illusion to think that we can escape from sufferings in this life. If the Son of God and Son of Man has suffered for us, if our leader and brother has suffered, why should we be exempted?
The consolation of the Resurrection is that in our trials, we have Jesus walking along with us, explaining to us the apparent incomprehensible mysteries of life. We do not walk alone. Jesus is with us in our pilgrimage, taking our questions, feeling with us in our anger and disillusionments, and empathizing with us in our straits. Like a good counselor, the Lord not only consoles us but He enlightens us that this journey of life, however painful it might be, will lead us from despondency to faith. All that is required of us is to believe in Jesus, that in our frustrations and hopelessness, He will gradually bring us out of our prison and remove the stone that prevents us from coming out of the tomb.
The tragedy is not because we suffer, but that we want to walk. Jesus wants to walk with us but we want to walk without Jesus. Jesus who had walked the same road to Calvary would know about sin and injustices better than any one of us. He teaches us that every suffering is an invitation to faith and trust in God. Jesus who has finished His journey would be the one who will accompany us on our way as well. But we must be ready to share our woes in confidence with Jesus and to listen to Him attentively, just like the disciples at Emmaus. We can walk with Him, like the disciples, by walking with Him in the scriptures and encountering Him in the Eucharist.
If we are mystified with life, then we must come to Jesus who enlightens us with and through His word. If only we turn to Him in the scriptures and pray to Him, He will direct, inspire and encourage us. But instead we turn to the world for solutions to our problems. Instead of seeking the wisdom of God, we seek for the folly of the world. We do not take the trouble to listen to the Word of God attentively like the disciples at Emmaus. Truly, the scripture is the primary way in which we meet God and Christ. Like the psalmist who placed His confidence saying, “I bless the Lord who counsels me. I set the Lord ever before me; with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed. You will show me the path to life, abounding joy in your presence.”
Through the Eucharist we will feel His presence in a more radical way. This was how the disciples encountered Jesus, for we read that “while he was with them at table, he took the bread and said the blessing; then he broke it and handed it to them. And their eyes were opened and they recognised him.” In the breaking of bread, we will come to find our fulfillment, for in the Eucharist we celebrate His passion and ours, His death and ours, His resurrection and ours. Through the Eucharistic meal, not only do we become intimate with Jesus but with members of His body, the Church. Through the Eucharist, Christ is made present concretely and recognized through our love, hospitality, compassion, service and forgiveness for each other.
To celebrate the Eucharist also means that we should never walk alone in the journey of life, since it is a journey of faith. The two disciples at Emmaus remind us that we need to accompany each other in our faith. We are responsible as members of the body of Christ to each other in the growth of faith. Only by sharing our faith journey together with fellow believers can we remain strong in times of trials and darkness. When we walk alone, we tend to become discouraged and lose our way.
Truly, Jesus is the bread of life both in the Word and in the Eucharist. The disciples at Emmaus said to each, “did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained the scriptures to us?” Like them too, we must turn to the Word of God daily and be nurtured with His love and presence in the Eucharist, if we are to face the crosses of our daily life. Only then can we follow the disciples in returning to Jerusalem, the place of suffering and glory. No longer do we need to run away from Jerusalem because we will fight on, for we know the glory that lies before us after our passion and our journey through this life, for we know that we share in the glory of our Lord forever. Like the disciples, we must announce with our lives that beyond evil and sin is the triumph of goodness and love; and that beyond death, we are alive in the Lord forever.
Written by The Most Rev Msgr William Goh
Archbishop of Singapore
SCRIPTURE READINGS: ACTS 2:14.22-33; 1 PETER 1:17-21; LK 24:13-35
http://www.universalis.com/20140504/mass.htm
Like the disciples traveling along the road to Emmaus, we too are pilgrims along the way. Life indeed is but a long pilgrimage, since to be a pilgrim is to walk nearer to God who is the goal of our life. But like them, each time we think we are nearer to our goal, nearer to happiness in life, nearer in solving our problems; new challenges and new trials lie ahead of us so that the road seems further than ever. This makes life rather frustrating and disappointing.
This was what happened to the disciples at Emmaus. They thought they were so near to their goal of liberation. “Jesus of Nazareth”, they said “proved himself to be a great prophet by the things he said and did” and “our own hope had been that he would be the one to set Israel free.” Hence, we can understand why they were walking away from Jerusalem, supposedly to the place of Hope and Glory, both politically and religiously, as all their hopes were now dashed.
We too walk the road to Emmaus every now and then in our lives. Our lives are full of unrealized expectations and disappointments. We are full of uncertainty about Jesus, disenchanted with His Church because of the presence of scandal and sin, especially among church leaders; disillusioned with our community, betrayed by our family, loved ones and friends; and disappointed with ourselves, with our career and our life.
In such a state of affairs, who can blame us for losing heart? In all appearances Christ, for us, is certainly not risen! That is why some of us cannot accept that Jesus is risen and we have new life, because all we see is a life that is still the same as before. Sin is not yet conquered. All we see are injustices, ingratitude and apathy around us. Suffering abounds. The liturgy and the Church seem irrelevant. Prayers do not seem to change anyone or the situation. People continue to be enslaved to themselves or other idols in their lives.
It appears that God has lost the battle and all that is said about Jesus and His saving by His death and resurrection is just a myth. In truth, a number of skeptics and disillusioned Catholics have concluded that Christ’s resurrection is either not real or that He has died in vain, since Christians are still not risen even as they proclaim that Christ their master and Lord is risen. Again, if we doubt the resurrection, then we are simply reacting the same way the disciples did to the news that Jesus was risen.
Why is it that, like the disciples initially, we are unable to recognize the Risen Lord? The gospel says, “something prevented them from recognising him.” What is this something that hinders us from seeing the Risen Lord?
It is because our eyes are not focused on Jesus but on ourselves and our miseries. Yes, their eyes were downcast. They were not looking heavenward but to the earth. Thus when the living Lord appeared to them (and to us), dead men and women, how could they see Him? Understandably, when we are feeling our pain and looking at our sorrows, we can only sympathize with ourselves. If we are suffering from a toothache, what else can we think of except the toothache? So in the face of sufferings, we can only feel sorry for ourselves, overwhelmed by our failures in life, just as the disciples were in their shattered dreams and hopes as a result of Jesus’ death on the cross. Not only are our hopes dead, but so is our heart! We are unable to see beyond ourselves and our pain.
In such a state, like the disciples, Jesus too reprimands us saying, “You foolish men! So slow to believe the full message of the prophets! Was it not ordained that the Christ should suffer and so enter into his glory?” Jesus Himself has carried that cross for us and before us. He has gone through the depths of hell and suffering on our behalf since He was a man like us in all things except sin. He carried all our sins in His body on the cross. He has walked the talk.
The truth is that there is no short cut to the resurrection. It is through our sufferings that we come to discover ourselves and the plan of God, albeit in an unpleasant way. It is through our sufferings in life, whether in relationships or in our life struggles, that we come to know our true selves, the meaning of fidelity, honesty, our sins, the sins of the world and in the midst of it, the compassion and love of God that comes to us in unexpected ways. It is through our failures in life that we learn success. Indeed, the crosses in life must not be seen as defeat. It is foolhardy and an illusion to think that we can escape from sufferings in this life. If the Son of God and Son of Man has suffered for us, if our leader and brother has suffered, why should we be exempted?
The consolation of the Resurrection is that in our trials, we have Jesus walking along with us, explaining to us the apparent incomprehensible mysteries of life. We do not walk alone. Jesus is with us in our pilgrimage, taking our questions, feeling with us in our anger and disillusionments, and empathizing with us in our straits. Like a good counselor, the Lord not only consoles us but He enlightens us that this journey of life, however painful it might be, will lead us from despondency to faith. All that is required of us is to believe in Jesus, that in our frustrations and hopelessness, He will gradually bring us out of our prison and remove the stone that prevents us from coming out of the tomb.
The tragedy is not because we suffer, but that we want to walk. Jesus wants to walk with us but we want to walk without Jesus. Jesus who had walked the same road to Calvary would know about sin and injustices better than any one of us. He teaches us that every suffering is an invitation to faith and trust in God. Jesus who has finished His journey would be the one who will accompany us on our way as well. But we must be ready to share our woes in confidence with Jesus and to listen to Him attentively, just like the disciples at Emmaus. We can walk with Him, like the disciples, by walking with Him in the scriptures and encountering Him in the Eucharist.
If we are mystified with life, then we must come to Jesus who enlightens us with and through His word. If only we turn to Him in the scriptures and pray to Him, He will direct, inspire and encourage us. But instead we turn to the world for solutions to our problems. Instead of seeking the wisdom of God, we seek for the folly of the world. We do not take the trouble to listen to the Word of God attentively like the disciples at Emmaus. Truly, the scripture is the primary way in which we meet God and Christ. Like the psalmist who placed His confidence saying, “I bless the Lord who counsels me. I set the Lord ever before me; with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed. You will show me the path to life, abounding joy in your presence.”
Through the Eucharist we will feel His presence in a more radical way. This was how the disciples encountered Jesus, for we read that “while he was with them at table, he took the bread and said the blessing; then he broke it and handed it to them. And their eyes were opened and they recognised him.” In the breaking of bread, we will come to find our fulfillment, for in the Eucharist we celebrate His passion and ours, His death and ours, His resurrection and ours. Through the Eucharistic meal, not only do we become intimate with Jesus but with members of His body, the Church. Through the Eucharist, Christ is made present concretely and recognized through our love, hospitality, compassion, service and forgiveness for each other.
To celebrate the Eucharist also means that we should never walk alone in the journey of life, since it is a journey of faith. The two disciples at Emmaus remind us that we need to accompany each other in our faith. We are responsible as members of the body of Christ to each other in the growth of faith. Only by sharing our faith journey together with fellow believers can we remain strong in times of trials and darkness. When we walk alone, we tend to become discouraged and lose our way.
Truly, Jesus is the bread of life both in the Word and in the Eucharist. The disciples at Emmaus said to each, “did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained the scriptures to us?” Like them too, we must turn to the Word of God daily and be nurtured with His love and presence in the Eucharist, if we are to face the crosses of our daily life. Only then can we follow the disciples in returning to Jerusalem, the place of suffering and glory. No longer do we need to run away from Jerusalem because we will fight on, for we know the glory that lies before us after our passion and our journey through this life, for we know that we share in the glory of our Lord forever. Like the disciples, we must announce with our lives that beyond evil and sin is the triumph of goodness and love; and that beyond death, we are alive in the Lord forever.
Written by The Most Rev Msgr William Goh
Archbishop of Singapore