3 Easter, Year A

Acts 2: 14a, 36 – 41
Psalm 116: 1 – 3, 10 – 17
I Peter 1: 17 – 23
Luke 24: 13 - 35

A homily by: Fr. Gene Tucker

Given at: Trinity Church, Mt. Vernon, Illinois; Sunday, May 8, 2011

“CLARITY OUT OF CONFUSION”
(Homily text: Luke 24: 13 - 35)

Ever have something clarified for you by a friend or coworker? You know, those experiences when somebody says something that just ties all the loose ends together in one simple, understandable bundle?

That’s the sense I get as I read the very familiar account of the events that took place on the road to Emmaus on Easter Sunday evening: Jesus takes the confusion that Cleopas enunciates, and creates clarity out of it.

Before we look at the trajectory of the events that took place as Cleopas and his traveling companion encountered the risen Christ, let’s remember that it is Luke alone among the four Gospel writers who passes this information to us. In fact, Luke is a treasure-trove of valuable information, for he reports so many events in Jesus’ life that no one else does. Thank you, Luke!

The road to Emmaus account is but one such example of Lukan material which is found nowhere else.

And so, we join Cleopas and his companion as they make their way from Jerusalem to Emmaus, which is located about 60 stadia (or about 7.5 miles) from Jerusalem. In truth, we do not know exactly where Emmaus was in biblical times. Some postulate that the present-day community of Abu Ghosh (which is about seven miles northwest of Jerusalem) sits on the site of Emmaus in former times.
At any rate, as Jesus joins them, He opens the conversation with a question, saying, “What are you discussing as you walk along?”

In response, Cleopas and his companion spill out a report of the various things that have happened, or have been reported to them. It might be easier to see the confused nature of their report if we put their comments in bullet form. Notice the things they say about Jesus, their concept of who He is, and things having to do with His resurrection:

• A prophet mighty in deed and word is how they describe Jesus.
• Redeemer of Israel was their hope for Jesus.
• A vision of angels, reported by some of the women of their group, said that He was alive.
• The empty tomb was what some who went to the tomb found.

Notice now that as they speak, they confirm certain aspects of what had happened, while they are quite uncertain about other aspects of it.
They confirm the following:

• Jesus was a prophet “mighty in deed and word”
• He was crucified at the hands of the chief priests and leaders

However, they are less certain about the following:

• We had hoped that Jesus was to be the redeemer of Israel
• The reports about the vision of angels, saying that Jesus was alive

In response, Jesus seems to chide them just a little. He says, “Oh, how foolish you are.”
But then, Jesus brings clarity out of their confusion. The sources of his self-revelation are these:

• Holy Scripture: Jesus begins, Luke tells us, “Beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in the scriptures.”
• The breaking of the bread becomes the definitive moment of Jesus’ self-revelation.

The witness of Jesus is confirmed by the eleven disciples, as the two make their way back to Jerusalem to report that they had seen the risen Lord. As they reach Jerusalem, and they tell their story, the disciples respond by confirming that they, too, had also seen the Lord.
Now, what does all this mean to you and to me?
Just this, I think:

• Confusion is often a part of our walk with God. After all, we are not talking about everyday, common events whenever God is involved. God being God, His actions are often beyond our human capacity to understand fully. So, it’s OK to harbor some confusion about just who God is, how God acts, and how we can see His work in our lives and in the world about us. Confusion is a normal part of our interaction with the divine. Cleopas and his companion have lots of company: the saints who have walked with the Lord down through the ages!
• God will bring clarity out of our confusion, and will confirm those things that are essential parts of what we need to know in order to live the Christian life. The sources will be much the same as those that were made available to the travelers on the road to Emmaus:

1. Holy Scripture, which bears witness to the mighty acts of God, particularly the act of raising Jesus Christ from the dead on Easter Sunday morning.
2. Jesus’ direct interaction with us in the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, in which we sup with Him, receiving Him into ourselves. “Be known to us in the breaking of the bread,” our Collect for the Third Sunday of Easter says.
3. The witness of other Christian believers, who relate to us by their actions and by their words that the risen Christ dwells within them, having come into their hearts and their lives by faith through the waters of baptism.

Thanks be to God!

AMEN.