[media presentation below] GospelThink Sunday, April 23, Third Sunday of Easter LUKE 24:13-35 When I appeared to the two disciples on their way to Emmaus, it took a while for them to recognize me, but they finally did. Prayerthoughts a. There are many times when we do not “recognize” Jesus in the person of others. Who are the people that I have most neglected over the past couple of weeks and how can I make things better? b. How would you describe Jesus to someone who knew nothing about him? (This is the task of the meditation.) c. The disciples were hoping that Jesus was the one who would redeem them. What do I hope for the most in my life? Why? d. The disciples no doubt knew that Jesus had said that he would suffer and rise from the dead. In your opinion, why did they not conclude that Jesus rose as they heard of the empty tomb? e. Jesus showed the disciples that they had to look at the Scriptures with Jesus in mind. As I read the Scriptures, do I always attempt to find what the Lord wants me to do? f. Is my prayer always asking the Lord to stay with me, even when there are times when I do not understand what is happening in my life? Do I find myself “giving up” on the Lord? g. The disciples understood who he was when he broke bread with them, a symbol of the Eucharist. When I receive the Eucharist, do I prepare well and thank the Lord afterwards the way I should when I receive the Lord? h. My prayerthoughts…   Today, I will write out letter b, describing Jesus to someone who does not know him. Some Thoughts on the Liturgy THE STAGES OF THE SPIRITUAL LIFE            In mathematics, there is a relatively difficult concept called “limit.” It is defined by a 5-line definition that is part of Calculus I. When I was in preparation for teaching math, I remember memorizing it without really knowing what I was memorizing; I understood it a little, but not completely. When I was teaching in high school, I was asked to teach some advanced math. I was explaining in class something that had to do with the concept of “limit” and suddenly it dawned on me what it actually meant. I remember stopping in class, staring at what I had written on the board, and saying “That’s what it is!” The kids thought I had some type of a vision or something.            I think of that as I think of the disciples on the road to Emmaus today. Once Jesus had left, they had to exclaim to themselves: “That’s what it is.” That is what Jesus was all about.           If we study the disciples in the Gospel and this whole Emmaus event carefully, one can see a picture of the spiritual life, I believe. As we study it, we can see people at three different stages of the spiritual life, and it is a good meditation for us to ask where we are.           The first stage can be labeled the stage of confusion. The two disciples had left Jerusalem disappointed because they did not understand what was happening. Many people are at this stage in their spiritual lives, and they choose to go no further. They may know that Jesus is the way, truth and life, but they have not had any recognition experience. Perhaps they simply do not want to take the time and effort to develop spiritually, that is they are giving into what I call the principal problem in the spiritual life today. It is that people do not consider God important, and therefore they will not become interested until there is some crisis in their lives. Perhaps they are disappointed in God because they may have been hurt by the Church or someone connected with Church. They confuse Church with the human people in the Church, and give up on God when it is not God’s fault.            The second stage may be called the stage of partial recognition. It may be the most important stage because it is where most of us are. The two disciples were attracted to this stranger. Many people feel attracted to Jesus as an answer, but too many other things get in the way. They have too much concern for money and material things, and they have a difficult time with Jesus’ directive to give of their time, talent and money to others. They may have their own agenda and think that God should be a certain way, and when things do not go the way they want, they give up on God. They think that religion is important, but not as important as other things.            The third stage is that of total recognition, those who have moved through the stages of the spiritual life successfully. These are the people who look at Christianity, and can say, “That’s what it is.” It finally dawned on the disciples of Emmaus who this Jesus was and what they had to do, moving them to action. It is a significant part of the story to see that they gave up what they were going to do—headed as they were for Emmaus, and went back to Jerusalem. It says symbolically that they “turned things around” and were accepting Jesus and his way as important. It is difficult, and takes effort; it requires things like conversion, and recognizing that we may have to do some re-thinking.           Primarily, it means making God truly important in our lives. This is the central point of what we must do in order to be spiritual people. The disciples on their way to Emmaus were asking questions because they did not understand what was happening. They were questions that dealt with their belief system—what this Jesus meant for their lives. And when they began to see the answers, they literally turned around and went back to the important things in life—Jesus and his way.           If we manage to look on God as truly the most important thing that we will do in our lives, we will turn things around in our lives here and in eternal life. MEDIA PRESENTATION Song: “Save Your Tears” — The Weeknd WORDS SAID ARE IMPORTANT WORDS The Gospel MATTHEW 5:33-37 Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, ‘Do not take a false oath, but make good to the Lord all that you vow.’ But I say to you, do not swear at all, not by heaven, for it is God’s throne, nor by the earth, for it is his footstool, not by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Do not swear by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the evil one.”

Gospelthink: I ask you to look at the words that you say. Am I honest in my approach to others?

“I saw you dancing in a crowded room, you look so happy when I’m not with you. But then you saw me, caught you by surprise, a single teardrop falling from your eye. I don’t know why I run away, I’ll make you cry when I run away. Take me back ‘cause I wanna stay. Save your tears for another day. So, I made you think that I would always stay, I said some things that I should never say. Yeah, I broke your heart like someone did to mine, and now you won’t love me for a second time.”

In his song ‘Save Your Tears,” The Weeknd sings about a breakup that happened and the man in the relationship would like to have it back. It seems from the song that she had broken his heart first, and then he got back at her, and in the process used some words, as he said, “that I should never say.” As a result, there is no second chance. It brings up the whole question of what words should be said when a person wants to make a commitment. For Jesus it was really very clear. If you are going to make a promise, you do not have to call on anyone to verify what you are doing. You do not have to swear by God or heaven. You do not have to call down evil on yourself if the promise is not kept. You simply have to mean what you say. If you say “Yes,” then, yes, you will do it. If you say “No,” then, no, you will not do it. It may be that our world has not learned the lesson very well. Every young adult and adult member of our society knows of promises that politicians make that are never or only partially kept. We also see a divorce rate that is soaring, even though the couple has said “forever.” We see relationships in which people will promise anything in order to fulfill their selfish desires. We see sincere commitments that are made by both sides of an agreement, but one of the parties does not mean it. And case in point here, we see people who say some things in anger, but then want to take them back and the other person will not forget. Sometimes we can “explain away” the words that we have said in anger. But the adage is true: “You can never un-say what has been said.” It is really a question of how the person to whom the words are said judges the person that says the words. Does he/she really mean them, or is it just anger or stupidity, and can I live forever with the fact that he/she said those words at one time? It seems in Jesus’s mind, if a person has said “yes” to a permanent commitment, then nothing should make either party change their minds. If we say something we mean it. But if the word “forever” has not been spoken yet in a relationship, the couple must be very careful about the words that come out of their mouths. Words said are important words.

PRAYER Good and gracious God, we all have the power of speaking. But often the words that we say are not what they should be because of our own sinfulness or because we simply forget about the words’ importance. Help us learn your lesson of direct speech. Be with us, we pray.

+++++ GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT Theme: We must be very careful about the words that we say to a loved one. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: 1. What does the song “Save Your Tears” teach young people? 2. In the song, do you think that the girl should give the boy another chance? Yes or no and why? 3. Why are  breakups so difficult? 4. In general, do people trust other people when they promise something? Yes or no and why? 5. In general, what is your opinion about why people get divorces, that is, what causes marriage breakdown? 6. Is it a true statement that we can never “un-say” what has been said? Yes or no and why? 7. In general, do young couples think carefully about the words that they say to one another?