The audio is available to listen online or download with notes.
Jesus appeared to his disciples after his resurrection over a period of 40 days (Acts 1:3), proving that he was alive, restoring them from the trauma of his death (renewing faith and following, e.g. Thomas: “my Lord and my God”). The encounters and disappearances weaned his followers from dependence on his physical presence, so that they live by faith in his invisible presence – the indwelling Holy Spirit. The post resurrection stories are paradigms of how Jesus encounters us today by his Spirit, to restore and heal us.
The Two on the Road to Emmaus
Read this beautiful story in Luke 24:13-35 as an exercise in “Lectio Divina”
- Lectio: Read the story slowly and prayerfully, asking God to speak to you… then…
- Meditatio: Meditate on what God says to you through the reading – whatever ‘grabs’ you, a word or phrase that speaks to you, or an image that fires your mind… then…
- Oratio: Pray orally (or mentally) about your meditation on the text; i.e. respond to God by praying about what he says to you in the text via your thoughts, feelings… and then…
- Contemplatio: Contemplation is the last step in Lectio Divina, moving from mediation and prayer to complete silence – beyond thoughts, images, words, feelings – to the still point of simply resting in God’s most intimate and loving embrace.
To help you ‘feed off’ this story – and for discussion in your home group – here are some pointers for meditation (the best is to relive the story in your imagination):
Reconstruct the context in your mind: it’s the Sunday that Jesus rose, they are walking home depressed, traumatized by Jesus’ death, confused by reports of him being alive… their Kingdom hopes utterly dashed. How have you been disillusioned? Continue reading Post Resurrection Encounters in Following Jesus – On the Road to Emmaus
