by Fr. Tommy Lane
What a difference our attitude towards life makes on our enjoyment of life. This is the positive approach of one woman.
Lord, thank you for this sink of dirty dishes, we have plenty of food to eat.
Thank you for this pile of dirty laundry, we have plenty of nice clothes to wear.
And I would like to thank you, Lord, for those unmade beds. They were so warm and so comfortable last night. I know that many have no bed.
My thanks to you, Lord, for this bathroom, complete with all the splattered mirrors, soggy towels and dirty lavatory. They are so convenient.
Thank you for this finger-smudged refrigerator that needs defrosting so badly, it has served us faithfully for many years. It is full of enough left-over's for a few meals.
Thank you, Lord, for this oven that absolutely must be cleaned today. It has baked so many things over the years.
Lord, the presence of all these chores awaiting me says you have richly blessed my family. I shall do them all cheerfully and I shall do them gratefully.
Such a beautiful positive attitude is one that you would expect of a disciple of Jesus but such an attitude is not what we meet in the two disciples going from Jerusalem towards Emmaus. Their faces were downcast. Their hopes had been dashed. They thought Jesus was the Messiah but he was crucified and dead, and with his death their hopes died also. When they came near to Emmaus they stopped, not wishing to continue their journey any longer because it was evening. After recognizing Jesus in the breaking of the bread do you notice the big change that came over them? They set out that instant and returned to Jerusalem. They had been leaving Jerusalem trying to escape from the reality of a dashed hope. Instead of staying away from Jerusalem now they wanted to go back again to where their hope was dashed. Previously when it was evening they did not have the enthusiasm to continue their journey any longer, and stopped when it was dusk. Now even though it was dark they set out to travel by night back to Jerusalem. What a difference it makes to have Jesus in your life! What a difference it makes to meet Jesus and know him. What a difference to meet Jesus in the Sacred Scriptures of the Bible and in the breaking of the bread. Then your heart burns within you.
When we meet Jesus then we have the strength to face the difficulties of life. We get this strength from Jesus the same way that the two disciples on the road to Emmaus did, by reading the Sacred Scriptures of the Bible and in the breaking of the bread at Mass. Vatican II (Dei Verbum §21) tells us that Jesus in the Eucharist and in the Bible is to be equally venerated. We all believe that Jesus is really present in the Eucharist but Jesus is just as present to us when we read the Bible. Did you ever think about that? Would you consider taking out your Bible and reading from it if you are not doing so?
The disciples met Jesus on the road in the Scriptures and the breaking of the bread but also they met Jesus himself. That was a gentle meeting. He walked by their side. He listened to their story. He met them where they were at. He met them at their own level. We too meet Jesus in people who treat us like that, who listen to our stories even if they don’t make sense to them. We meet Jesus in people who have the time to talk to us and listen to our troubles without being patronizing. We meet Jesus in the people who accept us with all our faults and failings. We meet Jesus in the people who help us to have a positive attitude towards life, by helping us in that way they help us to stop on the road to the depression of Emmaus and return to the joy of our everyday tasks in Jerusalem. Returning from Emmaus to Jerusalem we can pray like this:
Lord, thank you for this sink of dirty dishes, we have plenty of food to eat.
Thank you for this pile of dirty laundry, we have plenty of nice clothes to wear.
And I would like to thank you, Lord, for those unmade beds. They were so warm and so comfortable last night. I know that many have no bed.
My thanks to you, Lord, for this bathroom, complete with all the splattered mirrors, soggy towels and dirty lavatory. They are so convenient.
Thank you for this finger-smudged refrigerator that needs defrosting so badly, it has served us faithfully for many years. It is full of enough left-overs for a few meals.
Thank you, Lord, for this oven that absolutely must be cleaned today. It has baked so many things over the years.
Lord, the presence of all these chores awaiting me says you have richly blessed my family. I shall do them all cheerfully and I shall do them gratefully.
This homily was delivered when I was engaged in parish ministry in Ireland before joining the faculty of Mount St. Mary’s Seminary, Emmitsburg, Maryland.
More Homilies for the Third Sunday of Easter Year A
We meet Jesus at Mass like the two disciples on the road to Emmaus 2008
Related Homilies: Homilies on the Eucharist