Meditation 271
Luke 24: 36b-48
This story of the resurrection of Jesus happens in Jerusalem. Earlier in chapter 24 of Luke Jesus had appeared to two followers of Jesus as they were walking on the road to Emmaus. When these two realized that they had seen Jesus they returned to Jerusalem where they found “the eleven and their companions” (Luke 24: 33), which is to say the remaining eleven of the chosen disciples and other followers of Jesus. These people in Jerusalem were talking about how Jesus had appeared to Simon, and now the two from the Emmaus Road were saying that they too had seen Jesus, and while they were talking, Jesus appeared among them.
I think that it is significant that Jesus appears to the people who love him in the midst of their lives. There is no drama and disturbance in nature to announce his presence, he does not appear at the temple or even at one of the synagogues. He appears to two on the Emmaus Road as they are walking and talking to one another, and he appears to others in Jerusalem right where they are gathered. And so it is for us, Jesus is in he midst of our living. We do set time apart for God in our lives when we attend public worship, and when we go to a quiet place to pray, but these are not he only places that Jesus is with us. Jesus is our friend who is with us day by day, and the most genuine way we share Jesus with others is by being their friend.
An American pastor Brian McLaren has this to say about friendship “Christian mission begins with friendship—not utilitarian friendship, the religious version of network marketing—but genuine friendship, friendship that translates love for neighbors in general into knowing, appreciating, liking, and enjoying this or that neighbor in particular. . . .” Brian goes on to tell how he became friends with a local Imam. It was just after Sept 11, 2001. There was a message given to his heart while praying, he says “I felt a voice speaking, as it were, in my chest: Your Muslim neighbors are in danger of reprisals. You must try to protect them”. He wrote letters of friendship to leave at the three mosques in his neighbourhood. At the first two there was no one present, so he simply left the letter he had written, and went on to the next. At the third mosque the imam was there, and Brian in a somewhat self conscious way handed the letter to the imam. “I then handed him my letter, which he opened and read as I stood there awkwardly. I remember the imam, a man short in stature, slowly looking down at the letter in the bright September sun, then up into my face, then down, then up, and each time he looked up, his eyes were more moist. Suddenly, he threw his arms around me—a perfect stranger. . . . I still remember the feeling of his head pressed against my chest, squeezing me as if I were his long-lost brother. . . .” (All quotes from Richard Rohr Daily Meditation. April 15, 2021. Center for Action and Contemplation)
Jesus comes to us in the midst of our lives as our holy friend. He loves us and cares about our day to day living, and Jesus invites us to share the grace he gives us with those we meet. The act of friendship is a good way to start.