JUN & JEAN URIARTE
The story of the appearance of Jesus to two disciples on the road to Emmaus starts as among the most poignant episodes in the New Testament but ends with great tenderness and joy. Two dejected and disappointed disciples were “going to a village seven miles from Jerusalem called Emmaus” (Lk 24:13) when “Jesus himself drew near and walked with them” (Lk 24: 15). They were dejected because Jesus had been handed over “to a sentence of death and crucified him” (Lk 24:20). And they were disappointed because they “were hoping that he would be the one to redeem Israel” (Lk 24:21).
Who are these two disciples? The evangelist, Luke, identifies one of them as Cleopas. The other is unnamed, but some Bible scholars believe he is another male disciple, as depicted in many artists’ renditions of the event. This belief has now become less prevalent. As described in the Gospel of John, there is another Mary at the foot of the cross besides Mary, the mother of Jesus. She is identified as “Mary, the wife of Cleopas” (Jn 19:25). Both Catholic and Orthodox traditions believe that Cleopas is the younger brother of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Thus, Mary, the wife of Cleopas, is the sister-in-law of Mary, the mother of Jesus. This explains why Mary, the wife of Cleopas, is at the foot of the cross. She is there to comfort her sister-in-law, Mary, the mother of Jesus. And she must have been accompanied by her husband, Cleopas, to celebrate Passover in Jerusalem.
Where is Emmaus? Emmaus is 11 kilometers from Jerusalem, about a couple of hours’ walk. It means “warm spring” in Aramaic and is mentioned only once in the Gospels. There are many speculations on exactly where Emmaus is located today. But it is most likely the current Arab village of El-Qubeibeh, where there is now a Franciscan monastery and a church built over what is believed to be Cleopas’ home.
Mary and Cleopas must have witnessed the crucifixion of Jesus – Mary from the foot of the cross while Cleopas from a distance (“all his acquaintances stood at a distance” Lk 23:49). Cleopas and Mary must have observed the Sabbath in Jerusalem, but then it was time for them to return to their home in Emmaus. They had been away for a week, and it was time for Cleopas to return to work. Along the way, they were discussing Jesus’ passion and death when a man suddenly appeared and walked with them. The man seemed ignorant of the recent events in Jerusalem, but later he went on to interpret things that referred to the Messiah in the Scriptures.
But why did Mary and Cleopas not recognize Jesus, especially if he was their nephew? Because their latest memory of Jesus was the bloodied and mutilated body on the cross, but what they saw now was a very different glorified body of the resurrected Jesus.
When they arrived at Emmaus, Mary and Cleopas invited the man to stay with them. This bolstered the belief that the two disciples were a married couple. First, because they lived together (it is less likely that two men would be living together unless they are brothers or somehow closely related). Second, because they seemed to own the place (it is more likely for a married couple who owns the site to invite a stranger to dinner and to stay with them than two seemingly unmarried men who are merely renting the place).
When the man accepted the couple’s invitation, Mary hurried to prepare supper. When they sat down, the man took some bread, said a blessing, broke the bread, and gave it to them. At that, their eyes were opened, and they recognized Jesus. But just as they did, he vanished. Realizing that they had been with the resurrected Jesus, Cleopas and Mary hurried back to Jerusalem to tell the Apostles what had happened to them and how they recognized Jesus in the breaking of the bread.
There are three important points for reflection in the story of Jesus’ appearance on the road to Emmaus. First, Cleopas’ description of Jesus as “a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people” (Lk 24:19) echoes Stephen’s description of Moses during his discourse just before he was stoned to death. He said, “Moses … was powerful in his words and deeds” (Acts 7:22). Thus, one of the revealing aspects of the Emmaus story is the hidden manner of looking at Jesus as the new Moses. In Jesus of Nazareth, Pope Benedict XVI writes: “Jesus sits on the cathedra of Moses. But he does so not after the manner of teachers who are trained for the job in a school; he sits there as the greater Moses, who broadens the Covenant to include all nations.” The Pope declares that “what was true of Moses only in fragmentary form has now been fully realized in the person of Jesus: He lives before the face of God, not just as a friend, but as a Son.” During his weekly audience on 3 June 2011, Pope Benedict XVI further declares: “Moses was willing to sacrifice himself to God for the sins of the people of Israel, just as Jesus Christ later sacrificed himself for the sins of humanity.”
The second point for reflection is that Jesus’ walk with Cleopas and Mary on the road to Emmaus is a reversal of the event in the Garden of Eden in which God walked with Adam and Eve. During the walk to Emmaus, Jesus opened the Scriptures to Cleopas and Mary. When Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, their minds were opened to sin. In the Garden of Eden, God walked with the first couple. On the road to Emmaus, God walks with another couple. Then at the breaking of the bread, the couple’s minds are opened to Jesus, the fruit of the Tree of Life.
The third point for reflection is the verse: While he was with them at table, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them (Lk 24:30). The words – took, blessed, broke, gave – are the same words used to describe the institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper. At this point, Cleopas and Mary recognized Jesus. But then Jesus immediately vanished. But his presence remained in the bread that had been blessed and broken.
The pattern of the encounter on the road to Emmaus is the same pattern we see in the Holy Mass. The liturgy of the Eucharist follows the liturgy of the Word. On the road to Emmaus, Jesus opens up the Scriptures (Liturgy of the Word). At the dinner table, Jesus takes, blesses, breaks, and gives the bread to his disciples (Liturgy of the Eucharist). We learn about Jesus, his teachings, and his marvelous works through the Scriptures. But the fullness of our knowledge of Jesus can be obtained only by receiving Jesus in the breaking of the bread.
Taken with permission from the Uriartes, Letters of AQUILA and PRISCILLA, Reflections of Jun and Jean Uriarte, Volume 20 Issue 4, April 2023.