Incarnation, Revelation or Disorientation
Why Didn’t They Recognize Jesus?
by Carol Howard Merritt
Gospel Reading: Luke 24:13-35
For Sunday, May 8, 2011: Year A - Easter 3
I was reaching for the handle of the lobby door when I saw the back of his head through the glass. I gasped for breath and my heart started beating faster. I was elated and scared all at the same time. The split-second sight of Phil touched an emotional response deep within me, and it took a couple more seconds for my intellect to catch up. My mind collided with my gut when Phil turned around.
It wasn’t him. It was someone else entirely. That made sense, and I felt better, even though the exhilaration drained from me.
I had been “seeing” Phil everywhere. Even though he had been dead for a month, I didn’t want to believe it. He committed suicide when he was so vital and strong. Phil was at the beating heart of every party, so I couldn’t quite imagine him, still and lifeless, in the bottom of that Jeep. When his life was cut short like that, it was so tragic that my head kept playing games on me. I would recognize him in a crowd moving onto the elevated train, or he would be standing at the back of the bus during rush hour, or he would be waiting in the lobby of our apartment building. Just as quickly as I would recognize him, his face would vanish and morph into another man’s visage.
Disorientating Grief
This time in my life always comes up when I read this passage of the disciples on the Road to Emmaus. I imagine Jesus’ friends with that same trauma, the disorienting grief, not quite believing the reports of the women who bravely watched Jesus die. Then the men weren’t sure if they could believe the women when they said the tomb was empty either. The disciples seemed to be confused, afraid for their lives, missing their friend, and realizing that his life was cut short, along with their hopes for the Messiah.
Recognizing Jesus
Losing my friend and living through the bewilderment that followed, always makes me pause and wonder about this narrative. Why didn’t the disciples recognize Jesus? The gospel of John reports that Mary had a difficult time recognizing Jesus, and it was only after she heard her name on his lips that she realized he wasn’t the gardener. Thomas longed for the extra confirmation of feeling Jesus’ torn flesh. And here, Jesus is having a long conversation with two of his disciples. Even after hearing him for such a long time, even after the strange warming in their hearts, they didn’t recognize him.
Uncertainty & Incarnation
Does this uncertainty tell us about Jesus’ incarnation? Was there something about Jesus’ resurrected body that made him unidentifiable? The stories tell us that he was appearing in locked rooms and vanishing before the disciples’ eyes. Clearly, there was something different about Jesus’ flesh and blood.
Does the fact that the disciples did not recognize Jesus point to the nature of the revelation of God? Could it be that God could not be identified unless God reveals Godself?
Or is this passage telling us something about us? Is it showing us the nature of grief and how disorienting it can be? Kathryn Johnston, a pastor at Mechanicsburg Presbyterian Church, explained her answer in a tweet to me this way, “When grief and the dark of the valley engulf you, you cannot even see Jesus in front of your face. He’s there. Just. keep. walking.”
The Hardest Question
What do you think? Why couldn’t they recognize him?
Carol Howard Merritt is a pastor at Western Presbyterian Church, an intergenerational congregation in Washington, D.C. Western’s deep commitment to serving the poor in the city has helped to initiate programs like Miriam’s Kitchen, a social service program for the homeless which provides a hot, nutritious breakfast and dinner for over 200 men and women each weekday. Carol is the author of Reframing Hope (Alban, 2010) and Tribal Church, (Alban, 2007). Carol is the co-host of God Complex Radio with Landon Whitsitt. And she blogs for the Huffington Post. Carol is a frequent conference speaker. Her blog is at TribalChurch.org.
I appreciate this commentary as my mom died what will be three month ago on May 10th. I picked up of course then on the grief within this commentary.
I think for me the hardest place to see Jesus though is in the face of those with whom I disagree vehemently. The toxic nature of the exchanges that take place through partisan politics and those who cover it seems to be escalating despite John Stewart and Stephen Colbert’s best efforts.
I struggle with how I can see Jesus in someone who seems to not only disagree with my theology and politics, but seems to exude hatred and/or malice for my position. Will Jesus appear when I am able to sit down at the Communion table or a dinner table and break bread with folks in this camp?
Am I able to see the risen Christ in my own limitations in accepting folks who raise the same ire within me because of where they find themselves on issues of biblical interpretation or political debates?
What would breaking bread between us look like and how responsible am I for helping to facilitate the process?
Thought provoking blog as usual. Thanks for your work.
May 3rd, 2011 at 12:11 pmDwight
Breaking the bread, the great cloud of witnesses…The theology of grief and resurrection are intertwined here as they are in many eucharistic liturgies. I love what you’ve done here. I too am thinking about grief, but tangentially. I posted a musing on my blog about stories and Patrick Henry. It’s going to show up in my sermon this Sunday. Interesting stuff…I hope.
May 5th, 2011 at 7:49 amPatrick Henry? Sound fascinating, Tripp. I’ll check it out.
May 5th, 2011 at 8:26 amI guess it wouldn’t have crossed their minds, right? They didn’t recognize him because they thought they understood death. They didn’t know there was a way to overturn it. It’s hard enough for us to believe, even though it’s our “belief.” What I love about this story is the snap of recognition. Those moments are fabulous, in the sense that they feel like fable, even though they are true.
May 5th, 2011 at 1:41 pmLove your story, and KJ’s quote. The two on the Emmaus Road didn’t have the example to work from, no reason to think he would ever be seen again. Their experience is a gift to us, this week and all the time.
Recognizing Christ in our midst is perhaps the crux of faith. I look to Mt. 25:31-46 to get at the heart of this matter. And I agree with Dwight above, perhaps the most difficult time to recognize Christ in our midst is his presence with/as our enemies. Very thought provoking blog Carol.
May 5th, 2011 at 4:23 pmI’m reminded in all of this that gaining a glimpse of the risen Lord is not the result of my action or my effort, but rather the incredible grace of God, exposed perhaps in the word and the sacrament.
May 5th, 2011 at 6:44 pmI’m reminded in all of this that gaining a glimpse of the risen Lord is not the result of my action or my effort, but rather the incredible grace of God, exposed in the word and the sacrament.
May 5th, 2011 at 6:45 pmAs I read your thoughtful blog, it is really difficult at coming to a nice, easy answer to your question. As I was thinking about that question however, I am drawn to look more closely at how Mary, Cleopas, Thomas and the others who had difficulty recognizing Jesus finally came to recognize him. With all of them they come to recognize through a reminder of what Jesus actually DID, not said. In this passage Jesus opens up the scriptures to Cleopas and his companion and yet they don’t recognize until Jesus broke the bread. I’m guessing they were there when Jesus broke the bread before he was crucified. It seems to me they intimately recognized what Jesus was doing, perhaps because Jesus is the only one that does it that way, or Jesus did it they way he always had done it. Same with Mary, she recognizes Jesus when he says her name. Just like a child recognizes the voice and the tone and the pitch of a mother’s/father’s voice, it seems perhaps Mary understood immediately when Jesus called her name, only as He did. I’m guessing Mary’s intimate relationship with Jesus and his calling of her name, his recognizing of her is what immediately allows her to recognize. Thomas asks the right questions, wanting to prove Jesus by the scars and the remnants of the crucifixion, because that sets Jesus apart from anyone else, only Jesus would have the scars He did, the pierced holes not only in his hands but also in his side. The others disciples in Luke recognize Jesus through his eating of food, a strong theme and element through Luke’s Gospel. Lastly, I look at the final verse of John for the greatest insight. Chapter 21 chronicles Peter’s journey from being a beaten and worn-down fisherman to being called to God’s kingdom work by Jesus. All the events of that morning happen in a way in which Peter would recognize. They happen at key places where Peter would undoubtedly have memories (ver poignant memories at that). One of the greatest verses is the one which says Jesus was cooking by a charcoal fire. The only other place this word is used in all of the NT is a few chapters earlier when Peter is heating his hands by the charcoal fire–right before he denies Jesus three times. It seems to me that Jesus is purposely trying to bring Peter “through the fire” in recognizing who he is, his mistakes, that the great calling he will receive is not by his works but all through Christ.
Perhaps just mere “seeing” isn’t believing.. but it is seeing action, hearing intimacy that allows us to recognize Jesus. After all, we are called to be Christ’s hands and feet… to understand what He would have us do in this world. In this way, would we be recognized as those who follow Christ, not simply by what we say (or don’t say) regarding God, but truly by what we are willing to do… intimately calling the name of those who are broken, sharing meals with all who need it (not necessarily deserve it), showing our scars and imperfections rather than hiding all that is “wrong” with us in favor of that which is great… as we humbly try to be Jesus’ humble hands and feet–that is how others will recognize that we indeed are Christ’s disciples.
How amazing to hear Jesus’ intimate calling of our names, to feel his scars and holes with our own hands, to receive the bread only as Jesus can break it. As a musician once said, “faith isn’t believing what God will do but believing what God has already done.”
thanks for your intimate and candid thoughts. They were so very helpful.
May 7th, 2011 at 10:13 amThank you to all for the thought provoking ideas. Christ comes to all of us on a personal basis and is many things to many people. My faith grows that He is the answer to the question that has no answer. In other words, not all questions need to be answered, at least not by us.
June 18th, 2011 at 10:45 pmI’ve started seeing Christ on the road with me much more frequently in recent years as I’ve stopped only looking for him in Christian settings. Several years ago I was on my way to the theatre, when out of the corner of my eye I spotted a group of people stepping into a crosswalk on the busy street. The group had an ungainly rythm as they moved – a bit less organized than the usual group heading down the street together. I realized in a moment that this was a group of developmentally disabled adults on a group outing. I looked down the street and saw a van bearing the logo of a local synagogue. As the group finally headed into the crosswalk, I noticed one man who was obviously “in charge” of the group. He was literally “shepherding” his flock across the street. Dark suit, long beard, yarmulke – I took him to be a rabbi – and I realized I was blessed with a glimpse of my risen Christ at work in the world. He still suprises me where he pops up, and I can only hope that once in awhile someone looks across the street and glimpses him in me!
July 13th, 2011 at 11:30 amRecognizing and knowing someone are 2 different things. I may “recognize” a person but not necessarily “know” them.
It seems to me that those that Jesus walked with and talked with in this passage eventually “recognized” him however did not “know” him.
It’s funny how news spread so quickly at that time. Earlier during the day Jesus had appeared to Mary at the tomb. She “knew” Jesus yet did not “recognize” him until he spoke and she “heard” him call her name.
Those on the Emmaus road spoke with Jesus and heard his words but did not “see” or “recognize” him until they “tasted” and “touched” the bread and wine.
When they did “see” they recognized Jesus and then he vanished. His continued presence among them was no longer necessary for them to believe.
Jesus then appeared to another group of people while the 2 from Emmaus were talking with them. It was only after Jesus said “peace” and calmed the group could he sit and teach and then “their minds were opened.” When there is “fear” very little can be taught or learned.
There are many different ways of “knowing” and “recognizing” Jesus. Some need the “tangible” elements of touch and taste like the communion table. Some need to “see” Jesus, visible through action. Some need to “hear” affirming words like “peace”. Some need the emotion of the warming heart, the witness of the spirit within when truth is spoken.
Why was Jesus not recognized then? For the same reason he is not recognized now. He is not truly known. Times of grief and confusion can be very disorientating, yet when one is “still” peace can overcome fear and our minds can be clear and open while our hearts are burning warm.
April 17th, 2012 at 8:41 amIn Christ
Rev. Adelina Pecchia
Halifax, Nova Scotia