THIRD SUNDAY IN EASTER - APRIL 23, 2023

THIRD SUNDAY IN EASTER

Since a very busy Easter Sunday, we as a Church are slowly returning to the routine of the liturgical schedule. With the excitement and joy of the Triduum liturgies slowing down, now is the time for us to get back into the mindset of living a regular life within the Church, attending the typical Sunday Mass, going to confession consistently, and inviting prayer into our lives more regularly. However, even though the liturgies of the Triduum were profound and emotional, we are given the opportunity to relive the entire story of the Triduum every time we come to Mass. Christ revealed this to us through his post-Resurrection appearances.

READ THIS SUNDAY'S MESSAGE

In this Sunday’s Gospel, we hear the story of the Road to Emmaus, one of the few accounts of an encounter with Jesus after the Resurrection. Many of the details of this story are well-known: two disciples are escaping Jerusalem for fear of persecution, they encounter Jesus on the way but do not recognize him, he opens up the Scriptures to them as they speak, they invite him to a meal where he breaks bread with them, they come to realize that it is indeed Christ before he vanishes, and they return to Jerusalem to tell the others that Christ is risen. This story, though, is an analogy for Mass and the sacramental life. During the Mass, Christ slowly reveals his true and substantial presence among us, first in the Liturgy of the Word and especially in the proclamation of the Gospel, then in the Transubstantiation of the Eucharist, and finally and most fully in our reception of his Body and Blood. The disciples’ recognition of Christ culminated in the moment he broke the bread, but it first required their reception of his words and teaching along the way. We know this because they tell each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he spoke to us on the way and opened the Scriptures to us?” Their burning hearts were not always such; it was the stoniness of their hearts brought about by fear that led them to flee Jerusalem. In fact, even Jesus speaks of the state of their hearts before he begins to open the Scriptures to them, telling them: “Oh how foolish you are! How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke!” He was not telling them that they were slow of heart because they believed the prophets; rather, he was telling them that they were too slow in believing all that the prophets had to say about the sacrifice of Christ. They needed the Scriptures to be opened to them so that he might be made known to them fully in the breaking of the bread. What does this mean for us as we return to our normal routine of Sunday Masses every week? We will no longer have the excitement or beauty of the Paschal Fire and Exsultet from the Easter Vigil. We will no longer have the overwhelming joy of the Prophecies or the Sacraments of Initiation for the Elect. Instead, we are left with the community, with the readings and the Gospel, the Homily, the Liturgy of the Eucharist, and Communion. All are absolutely necessary for our sacramental life. We need to be welcomed into the church by our neighbors. We need the Scriptures read to us in the Word and opened to us in the Homily. We need the breaking of the bread. It is not enough for us to merely think of Christ or pray to him only in times of need. If we want to fully realize that he is actually and physically present among us, we need the Mass. When we receive him in the Eucharist, we must act like the disciples at Emmaus, setting out at once to share to the world that Christ is actually and truly here with us.

FAMILIES, ACTIVATE!

Family activity to do at home: If you want to continue the excitement of the Easter Season, it is not enough to simply come to church every Sunday. We must embrace the sacramental life fully, to take advantage of all the gifts and all the graces that Christ offers us through his death and Resurrection. One of the best ways to do this is to increase your prayer life now while we are still in Easter. Some prayers and words we hear at Mass are added during Easter to remind us that we are still in the Easter season. Read the activity below to see how you can start implementing these additional forms of prayer in your family prayer life.