Opening Our Minds to Understand the Scriptures
(Acts 3:13-15, 17-19; Psalms 4:2, 4, 7-9; 1 John 2:1-5; Luke 24:35-48)
Our fundamental goal as human beings, created in the image and likeness of God, is to transcend ignorance and cultivate a deeper understanding of God's nature and His divine plan for the salvation of humanity. The Scripture readings for today offer profound insights into four crucial themes: ignorance, trust, knowledge, and understanding, all of which relate to the authentic nature and mission of Jesus Christ.
In the First Reading, we encounter the Apostle Peter addressing the gathered Jews, expressing strong concern about their ignorance of Jesus' true identity and the significance of His mission. He passionately preaches that Jesus is the fulfilment of God's promises, as foretold by the prophets throughout the history of the Old Covenant Church. Peter emphasises that understanding these prophecies is vital for recognising Jesus as the Messiah, urging his listeners to open their hearts and minds to this revelation.
The Responsorial Psalm captures a profound moment of reflection, in which the psalmist articulates God's incredible mercy. He portrays a relationship of trust between a faithful individual and the Divine. In times of distress, when life feels overwhelming, the psalmist affirms his reliance on God, confident that God not only hears his pleas but also offers protection and solace to those who earnestly seek Him. This reassurance invites all of us to deepen our trust in God's providential care.
At the Second Reading, we hear from St. John, who highlights the critical role of Jesus in fulfilling the sacrificial system established under the Old Covenant. He explains that Jesus is the expiation for our sins, a crucial theological concept that underscores His voluntary sacrifice on the cross. St. John emphasises that this offering of salvation is not limited to a select few but extends to all of humanity, reaching out to the whole world (1 Jn 2:2). This declaration invites believers to embrace the fullness of God's love and grace.
In today's Gospel, Jesus takes the opportunity to instruct His disciples in how to rightly interpret and understand the Scriptures. He reveals that the entire Old Testament, comprising the Torah, the Psalms, and the writings of the Prophets, contains prophecies and promises that point directly to Him. This teaching emphasises the continuity between the Old and New Testaments, illustrating how the life and mission of Jesus are the ultimate fulfilment of God's plan for salvation. Through this divine revelation, we are encouraged to seek a deeper understanding of Scripture and to recognise the presence of Christ woven throughout the tapestry of biblical history. Together, these passages invite us to confront our ignorance, strengthen our trust in God, expand our knowledge of His word, and deepen our understanding of the magnificent story of salvation that encompasses all humanity.
From the outset of its universal mission, the Church has consistently taught the Scriptures, following the instructions given by Jesus to His Apostles and disciples, particularly as recorded in the Gospel of Luke (24:25-27 and 24:44-48). This foundational teaching emphasises the intrinsic unity of the two Testaments, rooted in the coherence of God's divine plan and revelation to humanity. The Old Testament acts as a precursor, laying the groundwork for the events that unfold in the New Testament, while the New Testament fulfils and brings to fruition the promises and prophecies contained in the Old Testament. Together, these two Testaments constitute the authentic Word of God, providing profound insights and clarity that illuminate one another, as affirmed by the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC 140).
The teachings of St. Augustine, a prominent Bishop of Hippo who lived from AD 354 to 430, further elaborate on this interconnectedness, as he articulated, “The New Testament is hidden in the Old, and the Old is fulfilled in the New.” This statement underscores that the Old Testament is a vital context for understanding the New Testament. Similarly, St. Jerome, who lived from AD 342 to 420, emphasised the importance of Scripture in his assertion: “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.” This statement highlights that knowledge of the Scriptures is essential for truly knowing Christ and recognising His significance.
On the momentous day of Resurrection Sunday, Jesus Christ had a profound encounter with two of His disciples, identified as Cleopas and his son, as they travelled home to the village of Emmaus, located approximately sixty stadia (about seven miles) from Jerusalem. During their journey, their eyes were described as being “bound” (a term derived from the original Greek in Luke 24:16), meaning they were unable to recognise Him. As they walked together, Jesus took the opportunity to teach them, explaining how He fulfilled all divine revelation found in the Sacred Scriptures.
Upon arriving at their destination, the disciples invited Jesus to join them for a meal. In a remarkable parallel to the Last Supper, Jesus took bread, blessed it, and broke it (as recorded in Luke 22:19). At that pivotal moment, their spiritual eyes were opened, and they finally recognised Him as the Christ (Luke 24:30-32). This transformative recognition was significant not only as a revelation of His identity but also as an affirmation of the true Messianic meaning of the Scriptures they had studied.
The disciples’ experience on the road to Emmaus offers a powerful reversal of the condition of sin experienced by Adam and Eve when their “eyes were opened” to the knowledge of good and evil. The phrase “their eyes were opened” (Luke 24:31) mirrors the wording in the Greek Septuagint of Genesis 3:7, linking both pivotal moments in biblical history. Just as Jesus “opened” the Scriptures to them, He also initiated the “opening” of their eyes during the breaking of the bread.
In a natural response to their newfound understanding and recognition of Jesus’ presence in their lives, the Emmaus disciples felt compelled to share their encounter. They rushed back to Jerusalem to tell the Apostles and the other disciples about their experience. Upon their arrival, they found they were not alone in their revelation; they heard that the Resurrected Jesus had appeared to St. Peter, His Vicar, revealing His glory to him (as referenced in Luke 24:34 and 1 Corinthians 15:5).
As the two disciples recounted their extraordinary experience, Jesus suddenly appeared among them, offering His greeting of “peace.” During the forty days between His Resurrection and His Ascension (as noted in Acts 1:3), Jesus made numerous appearances, manifesting His physical presence to His eleven Apostles and to various male and female disciples. Throughout this time, He provided critical teachings and insights, including a personal revelation to St. Peter and his relative, St. James, who notably became the first Christian bishop of Jerusalem. He also made an astonishing appearance to more than 500 people at once (1 Corinthians 15:6-7), underscoring the breadth and significance of His Resurrection and the foundational impact it had on His followers.
The Apostles were understandably frightened when they encountered Jesus after His resurrection (as noted in verse 37). To assuage their fears and demonstrate that He was not a ghost or a mere apparition, Jesus took several steps. He encouraged them to touch His wounds, inviting them to experience tangible proof of His physical presence. Furthermore, He asked them for something to eat, which reinforced His identity as a living human being made of flesh and blood, rather than a deceptive spirit.
In verse 44, Jesus articulated the profound connection between His mission and the divine revelations contained in the Torah of Moses, the writings of the prophets, and the Psalms. He asserted that these texts foretold the coming of the Messiah and that, throughout Sacred Scripture, prophecies related to His life and purpose had been fulfilled. This brings us to two key insights from Jesus’s teachings regarding belief in Him and the Scriptures, particularly the writings of the prophets:
1. There is a crucial link between one’s belief in Jesus and His mission, and the need to possess an accurate understanding of the Scriptures.
2. The phrase “All that the prophets spoke” underscores that every part of Sacred Scripture is imbued with prophetic significance and ultimately points to the Messiah.
When Jesus opened the minds of the Apostles to comprehend the Scriptures (as described in verse 45), it marked a significant reversal of the condition Adam and Eve faced when their understanding was clouded by sin during their fateful fall from grace. In a poignant parallel, Jesus “opened” the Scriptures to His disciples, as He had enlightened the eyes of the Emmaus disciples during the breaking of the bread, as recounted in Luke 24:31. This act symbolised how humanity’s eyes would continue to be enlightened to the presence of Christ, particularly through the sacrifice of the Mass.
In every generation, our grasp of divine revelation is deepened by reading and listening to the Scriptures, together with their exposition during the Liturgy of the Word, delivered by the priest acting as Jesus’s representative. Jesus foretold this when He proclaimed, “I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord’” (Matthew 23:39). Like the Emmaus disciples, we affirm our faith in Christ when our spiritual eyes are “opened” to recognise His presence in the breaking of the bread at the Eucharist.
You may wonder where the teachings that Jesus imparted to His disciples and Apostles regarding the fulfilment of Old Testament Scripture in His ministry and mission are recorded. These teachings were primarily communicated through oral tradition, passed down from Jesus to the ministers of His Kingdom. This oral instruction found expression in the New Testament letters, the writings of the Church Fathers, and established Church teaching. Jesus entrusted the correct interpretation of Sacred Scripture to His Church's ministers. As St. Peter poignantly stated, “Know this first of all, that there is no prophecy of Scripture that is a matter of personal interpretation, for no prophecy ever came through human will; but rather, human beings moved by the Holy Spirit spoke under the influence of God” (2 Peter 1:20-21). This emphasises the divine origin of the Scriptures and the necessity that their understanding be guided by the Holy Spirit.
The belief in the ability of individual believers to interpret Scripture is acknowledged, but it is essential to note that the Church plays a vital role in guiding this interpretation. The Church encourages all members to engage with and study the sacred texts, offering clear guidelines through the Universal Catechism. Specifically, sections CCC 109-119 provide guidance on how to approach Scripture. Nevertheless, to maintain a cohesive, unified understanding inspired by the Holy Spirit, the Church holds the position of final authority in interpreting the Scriptures. As stated in CCC 119, “For, of course, all that has been said about the manner of interpreting Scripture is ultimately subject to the judgment of the Church which exercises the divinely conferred commission and ministry of watching over and interpreting the Word of God.”
In the early days of Jesus’s ministry, His mission was primarily directed towards the “lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matthew 15:24), and this focus was also reflected in the initial mission of His disciples (Matthew 10:5–6). However, following His Resurrection, the scope of Jesus’s mission expanded dramatically to encompass all nations. The risen and glorified Christ is recognised as having universal power and kingship, which He conferred upon His Church’s ministers, granting them a worldwide mission to disseminate the Gospel and baptise believers, thereby fulfilling the mandate to reach from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth. This is echoed in scriptural references such as Isaiah 66:18-24, Daniel 7:13-14, Matthew 28:19-20, and Mark 16:15-16.
Between the day of the Resurrection and His Ascension to the Father, Jesus spent a significant period, forty days, teaching and appearing to His disciples and Apostles. This unique time, described in Acts 1:3, was marked by His ability to appear and disappear at will, delivering invaluable teachings to prepare them for their forthcoming roles in establishing the Church. He instructed them to wait in Galilee, as predicted at the Last Supper (Matthew 26:32) and reaffirmed by the angelic message (Matthew 28:7). The Gospel of St. John provides a detailed account of these encounters, particularly emphasising a significant meeting by the Sea of Tiberias, where the Apostles’ extraordinary journey had originally begun (John 21:1-23).
After their transformative experiences with the Resurrected Christ in Galilee, the disciples and Apostles returned to Jerusalem. They remained there in obedience to the tradition of attending the pilgrim feast of Weeks, known in Greek as “Pentecost,” meaning the “fiftieth day” (Leviticus 23:15-21; Acts 2:1). This Jewish feast was a "holy day of obligation," a crucial pilgrimage that all covenant men were required to observe. Celebrated fifty days after the Feast of Firstfruits, which marked Jesus’s Resurrection and fell the day after the Holy Saturday Sabbath during Unleavened Bread (Leviticus 23:9-14), the Feast of Weeks/Pentecost routinely coincided with the first day of the week, now known as “Sunday” (Leviticus 23:15-21; Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, 13.8.4 [252]).
Drawing a parallel to Moses’s forty days on the mountain in God’s presence, receiving divine instruction, the Son of God spent forty days appearing before His disciples. During this time, He imparted the essential knowledge needed to lay down the doctrines that would shape His Universal (Catholic) Church. At the end of these forty days, Jesus met with them again in Jerusalem, shared another meal, and then took them to the Mount of Olives. There, He delivered His final farewell and ascended to the Father, ten days before the Jewish Feast of Pentecost. This critical moment set the stage for the Church’s profound encounter with the Holy Spirit, marking the inception of the Church and its mission, as described in Luke 24:49-53 and Acts 1:3-11; 2:1-41.
Dr Nicholas Macedon OCD,
Jeeva Jyothi Carmelite Institute of Spirituality (JJCIS),
Old Gandarvakottai,
Pudukottai - 613301.
Tamil Nadu, India
What's app - +91 - 9698453101
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