Daily Gospel Reflection
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April 14, 2024
The two disciples recounted what had taken place on the way,
and how Jesus was made known to them
in the breaking of bread.
While they were still speaking about this,
he stood in their midst and said to them,
“Peace be with you.”
But they were startled and terrified
and thought that they were seeing a ghost.
Then he said to them, “Why are you troubled?
And why do questions arise in your hearts?
Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself.
Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones
as you can see I have.”
And as he said this,
he showed them his hands and his feet.
While they were still incredulous for joy and were amazed,
he asked them, “Have you anything here to eat?”
They gave him a piece of baked fish;
he took it and ate it in front of them.
He said to them,
“These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you,
that everything written about me in the law of Moses
and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled.”
Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.
And he said to them,
“Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer
and rise from the dead on the third day
and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins,
would be preached in his name
to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
You are witnesses of these things.”
Six days ago, the United States experienced a solar eclipse. The eclipse was total and spectacular for those fortunate enough to be on the path of totality with clear skies. For a few brief moments, the sun went dark. It was as if it had died, leaving only a single ring in the sky to remind us of where it had been. Then, a moment later, it returned, first placing a spot of brightness in the ring, then exposing its full glory, beauty, and warmth during the next few minutes. If you were in a crowd of people in those moments, you would have been moved to applaud.
In today’s gospel reading, we see Jesus as our eclipsed sun. He had died, and his glory had been extinguished by the cross. A giant rock rolled across his tomb. Perhaps, if we could see as God sees, a ring of glory still exuded from the rock, unnoticed by humanity. Then, three days later, the rock rolled away, and his brightness and warmth were again exposed.
Was it the full and complete Jesus who returned to us from the dead, or was it just a memory, an imagination, a spirit, a ghost? Today’s gospel gives us the simple answer. When he appeared to his disciples in their small room and said, “Peace be with you,” they found they could touch him, and he ate a piece of fish before them. If seeing and touching the risen Jesus was not enough, the disciples watched him eat a fish, leaving no doubt that he was in his body and had control of both body and soul.
We, too, will rise, when the moment comes. We, too, will be eclipsed for a brief time, only to return fully refreshed in body and soul. When our moment comes, I trust that we will all see and touch Jesus and maybe even share a piece of fish with him.
Prayer
Almighty God, your Son’s rising from the dead astounded his followers and turned their sadness into joy, their hopelessness into buoyant courage. Like the disciples who encountered him on the road to Emmaus, may we recognize Jesus in the breaking of the bread, know him as the fulfillment of our deepest longings, and proclaim him alive to all we meet. We ask this through Christ, our risen Lord. Amen.
