The two disciples who traveled from Jerusalem to Emmaus on the afternoon of the first Easter Sunday had an exceptional experience. They had the opportunity to hear the risen Jesus interpret all the Old Testament references to himself. Yet they did not recognize him until at the meal he took bread and broke it. They realized that it was he who had been teaching them and had just celebrated the Eucharist.
We get to meet Jesus in the same way when we attend Mass. During the first part of the Mass, the Liturgy of the Word, the Scriptures are read and expounded in the homily, so we hear God’s message to us. Then in the Liturgy of the Eucharist, the bread and wine are consecrated to become the Body and Blood of Christ, and Christ himself becomes present to us.
To encounter Jesus in this way requires only one thing from us – to be present. And so we’re asked to make a commitment of Time, time to be with one who loves us enough to have died for us and one who loves us enough to raise us to live with him eternally. To get to know the Lord Jesus better, we have to commit Time to worship at Mass, to study the Bible, and to pray. But what a marvelous reward is the result!
