From the Rector’s Study
Easter III, the Road to Emmaus
April 26th, 2020 Luke 24:13-35
At the 2014 Clergy Conference in the Diocese of Toronto, the Rt. Rev. Stephen Cottrell, Bishop of Chelmsford in England talked about this passage.
He said the most common model and metaphor for evangelism is: Paul on the road to Damascus.
Paul blinded by the light of Christ coming to him.
The Bishop said that the Road to Emmaus is a better metaphor. This passage suggests walking with those walking in the wrong direction. Jesus was walking with the two going from Jerusalem to Emmaus, when everything was happening in Jerusalem, so walking away from the truth of the situation.
This is a metaphor, and not necessarily about physically walking but spending time listening to the questions and concerns of the other, not coming in with our own agenda for the other but being open to hearing what they are thinking about. Maybe this means listening to their story.
It also means finding creative ways of walking together with while we cannot go out and gather together.
In “The Spirituality of Imperfection” by Earnest Kurtz and Katherine Ketcham, they talk about feeling good. They then talk about being good, and the root of the word good hints- to the Mandarin word ge^. This the same root as the words gather and together.
Patrick Carroll and Katherine M. Dyckman tell this story in; “Lend Each other a Hand.”
Some years ago on a sunny Sunday afternoon in Seattle, and young priest stopped to talk to a parishioner and her five-year-old daughter, Carmine. The little girl had a new jump rope, and the priest began to demonstrate the intricacies of jumping rope to her.
After a while Carmine began to jump, first once, then twice. Mother and priest clapped loudly for her skill. Eventually, the little girl was able to jump well on her own and wandered off with her newfound skill. Priest and mother chatted a few moments until Carmine, with the saddest, wisest eyes imaginable, returned dragging her rope. “Mommy,” she lamented, “I can do it, but I need lots of clapping.”
We need someone to hear our story, and we also need to see God’s part in this as well.
This is for us as well as for others.
Anthony de Mello in “One Minute Wisdom” writes”
One of the disconcerting-and delightful-teachings of the master was:”God is closer to sinners than to saints.”
This is how he explained it: “God in heaven holds each person on a string. When you sin, you cut the string. Then God ties it up again, making a knot-and thereby bringing you a little closer to him. Again and again your sins cut the string-with each further knot God keeps drawing you closer and closer.
Your may have other thoughts about this, and you can e-mail me if you would like,
Blessings,
Bryce