Acts 2:14, 22-28 / 1 Peter 1:17-21 / Luke 24:13-35
There was a popular song in the early 1980s that was played over the radio almost every day.
It was a high energy disco-type of dance song, and it was heard in every discotheque during that era.
Most of us would have heard of that song. The title is “One-way ticket”.
At that time, the lyrics of songs were not that easily available.
What mattered was the upbeat music, and the people of that era just like to hear it and dance to it.
But when we look at the lyrics, it is actually quite a sad song about heartbreak and the loneliness and turmoil after that.
Well, the lyrics say it all: “one-way ticket to the blues, gonna take a trip to lonesome town, gonna stay at heartbreak hotel”.
But the 1980s version of that song was so upbeat, so energetic that we just want to get up and dance, and never mind what the song is about.
In the gospel, the two disciples of Jesus were on their way to a village called Emmaus, which was 7 miles from Jerusalem.
As they walked along, they talked about all that had happened.
But it was a sad and disappointed journey to Emmaus. It was like a one-way ticket.
Even when Jesus came to walk along with them, they could not recognise Him.
Maybe their sadness and disappointment were so deep that all they could see was hopelessness and darkness.
As they walked along, they shared with Jesus how they had placed all the hope in Him.
But with His death on the Cross, their hopes were shattered, to the point that there were not even broken pieces to pick up.
So, their journey to Emmaus was like a one-way ticket to a lonesome town and to stay at some heartbreak hotel.
Beyond Emmaus, they seem to have no further plans other than to go away as far as possible from Jerusalem.
As they talked about their disappointment, sadness and hopelessness, Jesus listened, but He did not remain silent.
He spoke to them about the full message of the prophets, that the Christ should suffer and so enter into His glory.
And starting from Moses and going through all the prophets, Jesus explained to them the passages in the Scriptures that were about the Christ.
Meanwhile, as Jesus spoke, something was happening in the hearts of the two disciples.
Their hearts began to burn as Jesus explained the Scriptures to them.
And then at the breaking of bread, their eyes were opened, and they recognised Jesus.
They immediately set out and returned to Jerusalem, and told the disciples about what had happened on the road to Emmaus, and how they recognised Jesus at the breaking of bread.
So, in short, it was a story of brokenness and hopelessness turning into hopefulness and gladness.
It was not a one-way ticket into terminal disappointment, but a return ticket into gladness and consolation.
All that is possible because the God we believe in will not let hopelessness be a one-way ticket into desolation.
The God we believe in is the God of the Resurrection.
He raises those who are bowed down, and He lifts up the lowly.
We may feel that our lives and our faith are like mundane, going flat, and sliding down a one- way journey into desolation.
But let us keep doing that little bit to keep that little flame of our faith alive by coming regularly for Mass.
One day, our ears will be opened to listen to the voice of God in the Scriptures.
One day our eyes will be opened and our hearts will burn, and we will tell others how we have experienced Jesus in our disappointment and desolation.
But most of all, may we recognise Jesus at the Mass where bread is broken.
Yes, the Bread of Life is broken, so that hearts that are broken will come back to life and will burn with love.