Emmaus

"Were not our hearts burning within us?"

The story of Emmaus always reminds me of the summer I did service corps. We walked the "road to Emmaus," both the actual road to our house named after this place and in our journey with Jesus. I started out that summer with my own intent. I was going to try out religious life, not particularly to grow closer to Christ or be open to His Will. The two disciples in the story started out going to Emmaus, but immediately after recognizing Jesus, their plans changed. They returned to Jerusalem.
I walked that road to Emmaus with my friends, my sisters in Christ. With each one, the journey was different. Each one helped me to grow in my relationship with Him that summer. I did not recognize that He was often speaking through them. In fact, I don't think I realized how greatly God was working in my that summer. I often wonder about how I got so off track afterwards... I couldn't keep the prayer life that had been so easy to maintain there. But I didn't realize how much of that grace was directly from Him. That passion for the faith was a grace for the moment to help me draw closer. It made my heart burn with in me out of love.
Now I have to work harder. Life is different outside a religious community. Mass and prayer times have to be worked around work schedules, class times, and other obligations. But the journey continues. The journey of the road to Emmaus, of disciples walking with the Lord unknown.

Pax Christi!