I know of many who love going to art museums and can spend hours appreciating great works of art. It’s different for me though. After about twenty minutes of looking at paintings, they all start looking the same. I know I’m missing something and won’t get the same enjoyment as many others, at least not till something in my own perspective changes.
Missing out because of an incompatible perspective is something everyone experiences. It’s felt when you don’t get the punchline of a joke. Maybe, as a student, you experienced it when some concept taught in school just seemed impossible to grasp. Oh, you were told everything you needed to hear; no details were skipped. But, because of an incompatible perspective, something just seemed to go right over your head.
That’s basically the position the two disciples on the road to Emmaus found themselves in. As they walked along, Jesus was with them, but they didn’t recognize him. It’s a common pattern: that those who saw Jesus after the resurrection couldn’t recognize him. We’ve reflected on how a perspective focused on the cross and tomb as symbols of definitive failure made it difficult for Peter to believe Jesus had risen and impossible for Mary Magdalene to recognize the Saviour standing right before her. We considered how the disciples could see no other option but to hide in a locked room, so long as their vision was fixed on the power of the Romans and religious authorities. Despite the strangeness of the resurrection, these closest friends of Jesus should have been able to recognize our Saviour; he was right there before their eyes. But they couldn’t until gaining a new perspective, an Easter perspective.
The disciples on the road to Emmaus we heard about in today’s Gospel suffered from clouded vision too. They could retell the life of Jesus in great detail. They knew of his miracles and message. Their inability to recognize Jesus certainly wasn’t because they didn’t know enough. What they lacked was an Easter perspective. Death appeared final to them. In their mind, there was no need to look for Jesus, so they didn’t. Instead of joy, their day was filled with sadness and God’s presence went unrecognized. It’s so easy to be like those disciples. Many of us have spent years in Catholic schools; we know lots about our faith. But, when worry and anxiety creeps in, when we feel threatened or hurt, the miracles and message of Jesus become clouded and it’s hard to believe he’s with us at all. We don’t look for him. We can’t recognize him.
There’s definitely great news though. Even when we cannot recognize him, Jesus still walks with us. To those disciples along the road, Jesus worked in their hearts by opening the scriptures, by reminding of them of God’s Word. They were already very familiar with the scriptures; but God’s Word always has more to reveal. But when they took a closer look at the connections between the life and death of Jesus and the promises found in scripture, their vision began to change; they opened up to receiving an Easter perspective. We do the same thing at every Mass. Yes, we’ve heard the scriptures many times. But God’s Word always has more to reveal. We know that by reading and reflecting on the scripture, Jesus walks with us and offers a new perspective.
When they finally arrived at Emmaus, Jesus broke bread with the disciples and they finally recognized him; they gained an Easter perspective. It’s what happens at Mass too. Again, we know what’s going to happen when we come to church; there’s no real surprises here. But there is no better place to recognize the presence of Jesus among us than at the altar where he offers to us his very self. We meet Jesus in the breaking of bread and invite him to change our perspective as well so that, as we journey through life, we recognize his presence with us.
There’s plenty outside those doors to distract us from God or to say that God isn’t really there or that he offers nothing against the dangers of the world. When that happens, when the Saviour is difficult to recognize, we gather here to join those disciples who gained an Easter perspective, who discovered that Jesus had been with them all along urging them in his ways.
Maker of all, like those disciples found on the road to Emmaus, the hearts of your people are often filled with sadness and worry. Through the work of the Holy Spirit, help remove from us all that prevents us from recognizing the presence of your Son with us, all that keeps us from walking in your ways. Through this and every Mass, may our appreciation of your Word increase and our dedication to your Son be renewed. In his name, we offer our prayers. Amen.
