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Excerpts from Luke 24:13-35 (emphases not in the original text): That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. [One can only wonder why they couldn’t recognize Jesus if they had in fact spent the past 3 years as His disciples, following Him around daily, it would seem they should be able to recognize Him. Some might think that perhaps God had blinded them for some reason . but I would purpose it differently and say that what Luke presents to us is that they cannot see Him with their physical eyes because they are in the presence of the incarnate and resurrected God. No one sees God with their physical eyes – even in the Liturgy we say God is ineffable, inconceivable and invisible. God isn’t blinding them but they cannot see what is invisible and ineffable! Our physical eyes are incapable of seeing God. They are not recognizing God, that is their problem. There is nothing wrong with their eyes or their optics, but they need to see with their heart if they are going to see God in Christ.] Moreover, some women … were at the tomb early in the morning and did not find his body; and they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb, and found it just as the women had said; but him they did not see.” [The empty tomb, the message of the angels, the testimony of the myrrhbearing women, none of these things convince the disciples. There is evidence which they can see but it still does not help their understanding. The eyes are not the problem – but using eyes alone is the problem for they need to see with the eyes of their heart.] And he said to them, “O foolish men, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. [Their eyes are closed from recognizing Jesus, and their hearts/minds are also closed to the meaning of the Scriptures! Jesus opens their eyes and their hearts (or the eyes of their hearts) so that they can see/read/understand the Scriptures and with the eyes of their heart see Christ. Their physical eyes are of minimal value – God after all is invisible and the words of the scriptural text must be properly interpreted for their meaning to be comprehended.] So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He appeared to be going further, but they constrained him, saying, “Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent.” So he went in to stay with them. When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened and they recognized him; and he vanished out of their sight. They said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the scriptures?” And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven gathered together and those who were with them, who said, “The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread. [What happens to these two disciples of Christ brings to mind what happens in Numbers 24 with the Prophet Balaam when he proclaims: “The oracle of Balaam the son of Beor, the oracle of the man whose eye is opened, the oracle of him who hears the words of God, who sees the vision of the Almighty, falling down, but having his eyes uncovered…” “The oracle of Balaam the son of Beor, the oracle of the man whose eye is opened, the oracle of him who hears the words of God, and knows the knowledge of the Most High, who sees the vision of the Almighty, falling down, but having his eyes uncovered: I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not nigh: a star shall come forth out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel; it shall crush the forehead of Moab, and break down all the sons of Sheth. [Like Balaam, the disciples needed to have faith – to have the ability to see with the eyes of their hearts. Their eyes have to be “uncovered” – the veil has to be lifted, but this is an issue of faith not optics. What happens to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus is that they too have their eyes uncovered and they see the vision of the Almighty – they see Jesus as God, and in that instant he vanishes from their eyes, because He can only be apprehended with their hearts.] But their minds were hardened; for to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their minds; but when a man turns to the Lord the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being changed into his likeness from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:14-18) [To lift the veil, to have one’s eyes uncovered, one needs to purify one’s heart as we sing in the Paschal hymn: Let us purify our senses and we shall see Christ, shining in the unapproachable light of the Resurrection, and we shall clearly hear Him say, “Rejoice!” As we sing the song of victory! We can read the Gospel lesson of the doubting Thomas (John 20:19-31) with these same “eyes”. Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. [The disciples see the wounds on Jesus, but they see the Lord. They have moved beyond physical optics and now see Christ with the eyes of their hearts for this is the only way to see God.] So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” So he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.” [To me it is not completely clear what Thomas refuses to believe – does He not believe the Lord is risen or is he only saying that he doesn’t believe his brother disciples? He wants to see for himself or he cannot believe their report. Perhaps the issue is he cannot understand why would Jesus appear to the other 10 disciples at a moment when he (Thomas) was not with them? Was Christ singling him out for some reason?] And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!” Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.” And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!” [Thomas’ reaction goes far beyond what his eyes can see – he claims to be seeing God. He too now sees with the eyes of his heart – he has come to faith in Christ. He doesn’t see ‘Jesus alone’, rather He sees Jesus as one of the Trinity.] Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name. What is written in the Gospel is not so that we might “see Jesus” but that we might believe Jesus is Messiah, Son of God, the incarnate God. The entire Gospel is aimed at our hearts, so that we might see God.
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Današnji datum: 21. svibnja 2018. "Primite Duha Svetoga. Kojima otpustite grijehe, otpustaju im se; kojima zadrzite, zadrzani su im." Čitanje svetog Evanđelja po Ivanu Uvečer toga istog dana, prvog u tjednu, dok su učenici u strahu od Židova bili zatvorili vrata, dođe Isus, stane u sredinu i reče im: "Mir vama!" To rekavši, pokaza im svoje ruke i bok. I obradovaše se učenici vidjevši Gospodina. Isus im stoga ponovno reče: "Mir vama! Kao što mene posla Otac i ja šaljem vas." To rekavši, dahne u njih i kaže im: "Primite Duha Svetoga. Kojima otpustite grijehe, otpuštaju im se; kojima zadržite, zadržani su im." Ali Toma zvani Blizanac, jedan od dvanaestorice, ne bijaše s njima kad dođe Isus. Govorili su mu dakle drugi učenici: "Vidjeli smo Gospodina!" On im odvrati: "Ako ne vidim na njegovim rukama biljeg čavala i ne stavim svoj prst u mjesto čavala, ako ne stavim svoju ruku u njegov bok, neću vjerovati." I nakon osam dana bijahu njegovi učenici opet unutra, a s njima i Toma. Vrata bijahu zatvorena, a Isus dođe, stade u sredinu i reče: "Mir vama!" Zatim će Tomi: "Prinesi prst ovamo i pogledaj mi ruke! Prinesi ruku i stavi je u moj bok i ne budi nevjeran nego vjeran." Odgovori mu Toma: "Gospodin moj i Bog moj!" Reče mu Isus: "Budući da si me vidio, povjerovao si. Blaženi koji ne vidješe, a vjeruju!" Isus je pred svojim učenicima učinio i mnoga druga znamenja koja nisu zapisana u ovoj knjizi. A ova su zapisana da vjerujete: Isus je Krist, Sin Božji, i da vjerujući imate život u imenu njegovu (Iv 20,19-31). Neka četrnaestogodišnjakinja piše: "Najveći poklon u životu bilo bi mi naći Boga. Ali to je tako teško. Mnogo je toga, naime teško, a ponešto mi izgleda i besmisleno. Iz dana u dan idem u školu, učim, a zašto? Je li to uopće neka vrijednost što sam na svijetu? Moj život je uglavnom besmislen. Pokušavala sam često pomagati. Bilo gdje, bilo kome. U tom vidim jedini smisao... Vjerujem, zaista postoje ljudi koji su našli svoj životni smisao. Oni vjeruju u Božju opstojnost. Zašto ne i ja?" Mnogi ljudi čeznu za tim da nađu životni smisao i uvjere se u Božju opstojnost. I oni traže i pitaju: zašto i čemu, odakle i kamo smjera svijet i njihov vlastiti život. Već dvije tisuće godina nudi kršćanstvo odgovor na to, odgovor nenadmašan, po kršćanskom uvjerenju, ali i konačan: Isus Krist je spas svijeta. U uskrsnuću Isusa od mrtvih priznao je Bog da se u njemu može zaista naći put, istina i život. Već dvije tisuće godina kruže po svijetu ove riječi, ali uvijek i komentar dr. Fausta: "Poruku slušam zacijelo, samo mi nedostaje vjera!" To je već u osnovi bila Tomina situacija: Drugi su mu prenijeli vijest: "Gospodin živi", ali ga nije uvjerila ova sama vijest. Htio je osobno susresti Uskrsnuloga i uvjeriti se u njegovu stvarnost. Riječi mogu samo pripremiti vjeru, tek vlastito životno iskustvo može oživjeti poruku i dovesti do ispovijesti. Kako bi se inače dogodilo da mladi ljudi koje se možda preko tisuću sati poučava o Bogu i njegovu djelu, a da se ipak ne probiju do Tomine ispovijesti: "Gospodin moj i Bog moj!" Visoko poučavanje i kršćansko naviještenje mogu otvoriti prilaze za dodire sa živim Kristom samo u iskustvu vlastitog života i zajednici drugih vjernika. Iskusiti Boga u iskustvu života! I ovo je poklon, koji se ne može po želji ostvariti, planirati. S pravom je rekla četrnaestogodišnjakinja: "Najveći poklon u životu bilo bi mi naći Boga!" Što mi možemo učiniti jest ovo: osluškivati život iznutra, ne ostajati na površini svakidašnjice, ne zadovoljiti se postojećim. "Mora u životu biti nešto više od "svega", rekao je neki suvremenik. Ako se izgubimo u "svemu": u posjedu, radu, blagostanju, ili u brigama, u tjeskobi i patnji, onda ćemo upropastiti osjećaj za "više, nego sve". Samo ako ostanemo otvoreni za "više" moći ćemo ostati dionici iskustva Boga. Može li se kod nas osjetiti: Bog živi? Imamo li hrabrosti jedan drugome priznati tu vjeru? Ili ostati u dosadnoj rezerviranosti i nezainteresiranoj udaljenosti? Može li se naslutiti iz naših služba Božjih to: koliko Kristovo uskrsnuće prouzrokuje u nama radost? Daje li uslužno obraćanje siromašnim, patnicima, usamljenim i izdvojenim mogućnost spoznaje da smo voljni provoditi Kristov nalog? Mogu li djeca koja ovog tjedna idu na prvu pričest na nama pročitati da nam vjera nešto znači, da nam znači sve? Mogu li potvrditi odgovor što ga je nekoć dao Klement Aleksandrijski kad su ga pitali: "Što činiš ako želiš pridobiti nekog čovjeka za Krista?" On je rekao: "Pustit ću ga da godinu dana stanuje u mojoj kući." Možda je to ovo po čemu je Toma simpatičan: On jednostavno ne vjeruje riječima drugih. Osobno želi iskusiti Krista kao uskrsloga. Susresti ga, smjeti staviti vlastitu ruku na njegov bok, dotaknuti ga se, iskusiti živoga Boga, to je najveća čežnja našega života. Kod Tome se ispunila ta čežnja. Ona je kod njega prouzrokovala divno i zahvalno priznanje: "Gospodin moj i Bog moj"! Zanas vrijedi blaženstvo Uskrsnuloga: "Blaženi koji ne vide a vjeruju!" Naš susret s Bogom nije manje ozbiljan: Krist nas susreće pod prilikom kruha, i njegovo preobraženo tijelo daje nam se kao jelo, o nama ovisi, hoćemo li ovaj susret u vjeri prihvatiti i zbog toga biti sretni kao što je nekoć bio Toma. – Amen.