4-06 On the Road to Emmaus: How Can Luke's Gospel Help Us Be Better Disciples of Jesus?

The disciples who walked with Jesus on the road to Emmaus “recognized him… in the breaking of the bread” only after “he spoke to us on the way and opened the scriptures to us” (Luke 24:32, 35). In the same way, our faith today is nourished not only by the Eucharist that we receive in Communion, but also by the Sacred Scriptures that we read, study, pray with, have preached to us, and apply in our own lives.  “Conversing with Jesus along the road,” based on this Emmaus story, is not only an appropriate image for Christian discipleship in general but was also chosen by Pope Francis as the logo for the “Sunday of the Word of God” and as a model for the “synodal path” on which he invites the whole Church to travel together, with each other and with our Lord. This workshop will reflect on how we can live the Emmaus story today, and also consider other themes and emphases of Luke’s Gospel (which is read at Mass throughout 2022, “Year C” of the Lectionary) that can help us grow as more authentic disciples of our Lord Jesus.

Fr. Felix Just, SJ, is the Coordinator of Theological and Liturgical Formation of Permanent Deacons and the Coordinator of Ongoing Formation for Priests in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.  He received his Ph.D. in New Testament Studies from Yale University and has taught theology and biblical studies at the three Jesuits universities in California. He served for ten years as Director of Biblical Ministries at the Loyola Institute for Spirituality in Orange, CA, and as Dean of the Lay Ecclesial Ministry and Deacon Formation programs of the Diocese of Las Vegas. He regularly teaches in the "Catholic Bible Institute" of several dioceses in California and Arizona, gives many public lectures on a wide variety of biblical and liturgical topics, and often leads days of prayer, parish missions, weekend retreats, and biblically focused pilgrimages. He is a member of the editorial board for the revision of the New Testament of the New American Bible and maintains his own large internationally acclaimed website of “Catholic Resources” (https://catholic-resources.org).

Session Handout