Fr. Timothy Shea

Blog #5: Easter Stories!!

April 28, 2020

Sunday’s Gospel was about two men devastated by the death of Jesus. In order to cope, they have decided to get away from Jerusalem. The Gospel says they are “sad” because of “the things that have taken place”. Jesus finds them on their walk to the village of Emmaus, but they do not recognize him. After hearing their recap of their Jerusalem disappointment, Jesus interprets for them “the things that have taken place.” His explanation changes everything for them. They even invite him to “stay with us.” Which he does and as they are eating, he takes “Bread, blessed and broke it"....as they recognized him, he vanished...they said to each other. “Were not our hearts burning”. Then it says “they got up and returned to Jerusalem.”

Obviously, these men were discouraged by their Jerusalem experience, but Jesus found them, helped them to understand, and when they said “stay with us”, he did stay with them. When they realized Jesus was with them, they were able to handle what was going on.

The story starts with the men leaving Jerusalem where they had endured a bad experience. This story ends with the men going back to Jerusalem to help others. This illustrates the difference Jesus can make in our lives too. We are in the midst of this coronavirus emergency. It is a difficult experience that has changed our lives. Jesus finds us even when we cannot go to Mass. In our prayers Jesus can help us to understand how this challenging experience can be a way for us to grow in faith. Even though you have not been in the church, Jesus stays with you. Hopefully your prayers are helping you to handle these strange days. God is with you. God Bless you!