17 And he said to them, “What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?” They stood still, looking sad. 18 Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?” 19 He asked them, “What things?” They replied, “The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, 20 and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him. 21 But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place. 22 Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, 23 and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. 24 Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see him.” [Luke 24:17-24, NRSV]
Road to Emmaus, by Fritz von Uhde, 1891.
1. The Authority of Experience
In his intervention at the 1999 European Bishops’ Synod, Timothy Radcliffe, O.P., then the Master of the Dominicans, saw the culmination of the Emmaus story as the disciples’ return to Jerusalem to proclaim what they have seen and heard. Three points in his intervention provide a wellspring of insights on the question of authority in the Church and the crisis it encounters:
i. Give Authority to People’s Experience:
“The disciples flee. Jesus walks with them and accepts their hospitality. To have convincing authority, the Church must share the journey of the people, enter their fears, be touched by their disappointments, their questions, their failures and doubts. Often we speak about people: about women, about the poor and the immigrants; about the divorced, those who have abortions, about prisoners, people with AIDS, homosexuals, drug addicts. But our words will not have real authority unless we, in a sense, give authority to their experience, enter their homes, received their hospitality, learn their language, eat their bread, accept from what they have to offer.”
ii. Authority in Welcoming, Gathering and Reconciling:
“The disciples’ eyes are opened when they see him in the breaking of the bread. Our words will have the authority if they are seen to welcome in outsiders. Our words will have the authority of Christ if they gather people in and bring about reconciliation.”
iii. Authority in Proclamation:
The disciples who had a crisis of authority at the start of their journey had that crisis resolved not in their submission but in their proclamation. In the act of proclaiming the truth of the Lord, they became authorities themselves. The proclaimed Word has authority over us, and it also gives authority to us all.
2. The Authority of the Community
The understanding that it takes a village to raise a child has been traditionally recognized and practised across the globe. Today, we know that without the support system of schools and churches and scout groups and sports teams and neighbours, it is nearly impossible to raise a child. In the Catholic faith tradition, we conduct infant baptism upon the implicit promise to raise all our Catholic children in the Catholic community of faith. We know that it takes a community to raise children in the faith.
In life, our faith journey does not stop at childhood, but continues to develop thereafter. It was a stunning revelation when a community leader in a rural parish lamented over the refusal of a local engineer to help in the faith formation programme for their youths. According to the engineer, his faith formation having stopped at primary 6, the thought of teaching the faith to the young scared him stiff. He actually felt inadequate. But, as one with rural background and privileged with tertiary education, he could easily have picked up the required faith knowledge within a short time from the standard catechetical text books. His hesitation and eventual refusal to make that commitment was even more disappointing than his claim of faith-knowledge deficiency. He could, if only he would, contribute – and contribute much – to the communal mission of passing on the faith–baton to the young. He being a regular churchgoer, we presume he believes in the resurrection. What he needs is to take on board the prophetic voice of Walter Wink who says: “The resurrection is not a fact to be believed, but an experience to be shared.”
We cannot discount the influence of culture on our faith life. In today’s culture, where self-sufficiency and independence are fiercely valued, we tend to approach our faith journey as if we are essentially on our own. And yet, faith has always been a community endeavour. We do not have to be spiritual “lone rangers” or “hermits” to nourish our faith. Quite the contrary. From the very beginning, we find the early Christians gathering together to share with each other the bewildering experiences they have had with the risen Christ. Thus, a common theme linking all the Gospel stories of resurrection appearances points clearly to the fact that on discovering that Jesus was alive, the disciples immediately went back to the rest of the group to tell the others what had happened. This becomes more impressive when we turn to the Emmaus story. It is one thing for disciples to race from Golgotha to the upper room in Jerusalem. It is quite another thing for the Emmaus disciples to run seven miles back to Jerusalem from where they had just come earlier in the day, to share the good news with the others. Luke says that “That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem” (Luke 24:33). Furthermore, after the Risen Lord having again departed from them, all who have been initiated into the faith would come together to learn from the apostles, to fellowship, to break bread and pray (Acts 2:42). Faith flourishes in a community. The cumulative effect in the coming together and the sharing nourishes a community spirit, as members of the faith community mutually support, encourage and strengthen each other’s faith.
In order to thrive, faith needs to be carried out “in the presence of all God’s people” (Psalm 116:14). We thus see Henri Nouwen insisting on the authority of the community in Finding My Way Home:
- “Christian community is the place where we keep the flame of hope alive among us … . That is how we dare to say that God is a God of love when we see death and destruction and agony all around us. We say it together. We affirm it in each other.”
It takes a village to bring up a child, as the community demonstrates its faith and tradition in action in the real world. Faith is not easy. Most of us have reached a place in our lives, as the going gets tough, where we say with the disciples on the road to Emmaus “We had hoped …” (Luke 24:21). That’s when we know that it takes a community to hold on to the faith that God is working, through communal support system, to bring love and peace to every life in the midst of all the suffering and heartbreak of this world.
As Covid-19 continues to mutate and wreak havoc in society, may we pray for the advent of a season that’s merry and bright with the light of God’s love in your homes and in all communities across the globe.
Copyright © Dr. Jeffrey & Angie Goh, December 2021. All rights reserved.
You are most welcome to respond to this post. Email your comments to jeffangiegoh@gmail.com. You can also be dialogue partners in this Ephphatha Coffee-Corner Ministry by sending us questions for discussion.