guided

April 8

[media presentation below]

GospelThink

Wednesday, April 8, Easter Wednesday

LUKE 24:13-35

I teach the disciples who were traveling to Emmaus.

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?

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. Why did they not conclude that Jesus rose as they heard about 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 read Acts 3:1-10 and write an important thought from it.

Some Thoughts on the Liturgy

THE STAGES OF THE SPIRITUAL LIFE

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’s 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.

In the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles, Peter tells the beggar the one thing that he needed, that is the thing that would cure him, namely belief in Jesus. You and I are called to total recognition of Jesus, the one thing that is needed and then to work with it in the way that we live.

MEDIA PRESENTATION

Movie: "Coco" -- beginning session

GUIDED BY A DREAM

The Gospel

JOHN 20:11-16

Mary stayed outside the tomb weeping. And as she wept, she bent over into the tomb and saw two angels in white sitting there, one at the head and one at the feet where the body of Jesus had been. And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken my Lord, and I don’t know where they laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus there, but did not know it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” She thought it was the gardener and said to him, “Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni,” which means Teacher.

Gospelthink: Mary Magdalene was a special person who really wanted to be close to me. Am I a person that always wishes to carry out what the Lord wants?

Twelve year old Miguel had a dream that was totally different from anyone else in his family. He wanted above all to be a musician like the famous Ernesto de la Cruz. Allowing himself to be guided by his dream, he had to go behind his family's back to enter a music talent show in his town. In order to do it, he needed a guitar which he found in de la Cruz's shrine. But taking it brought a curse upon him, making him invisible to the town's people and a member of Land of the Dead. All along, he kept his dream to become a musician.

Mary of Magdala had a dream of what she wanted to do with her life. Since Jesus had touched her life in a special way, she wanted to follow him wherever it may lead. After Jesus's death, she did not know exactly what would happen, but her dream was still in tact. It meant of course that she would follow Jesus no matter what, even if he were stolen from the grave. Even before Jesus appeared to her, she was ready to pursue her dream of following the Lord.

In the movie, "Coco," Miguel had a dream that was much different from what his family wanted of him. They had assumed that he would be a shoemaker just like they were. But Miguel's dream was one of being a musician, in fact, being a famous musician very much like his idol Ernesto de la Cruz. He pursued his dream here on earth among the Land of the Living, and even in the Land of the Dead. When he had a chance to go back to the Land of the Living by renouncing his dream, he would not do it. He was convinced that his dream would guide him.

Such is the thought of every leader in our world. Leaders have an idea of what it is that they should follow in their lives. The dream may not be that of being a great musician as Miguel's was, but it will always have the idea of doing better than they are. It may come in the form of following the example of a great leader or doing the best they can with what they have.

Mary of Magdala knew what she wanted to do with her life because she possessed the dream that Jesus gave to her. Miguel in the movie "Coco" likewise allowed his dream of being a musician to be a guide in his life. When we are convinced of a dream, we will allow it to guide us.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, Your Son inspired so many people here on earth when He was here with us to be better than we are by nature. May we also accept His dream of a Kingdom of happiness and peace, and truly make it our own. Be with us, we pray.

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GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: Following our dream often means that we will not follow what others expect or want us to do.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
(session: approximately 48 minutes)
1. What scene during this session is most striking to you and why?
2. Mary calls Jesus a "teacher" here. In your opinion, what is the best description of Jesus?
3. The meditation calls for us to follow our dreams. What is the best way to follow our dreams in our world today?
4. Mary of Magdala's dream was to follow the Lord wherever the Lord would lead. What is the best way to follow the Lord in today's world?
5. In your opinion, do you think that most people always want to do better than they are?