Newsletter Vol. 1 Issue 41

Read Ahead: Luke 24:13-35

"Were not our hearts burning?"

We were invited in Monday’s newsletter to follow Saint Ignatius’ advice to return to a reflection from the past to see what God might be calling us to see anew. As we approach Pentecost, we pause to reflect on another thing Saint Ignatius invites us to do in the Exercises: to savor the graces God has bestowed on us over the months of our Discernment Series. To savor is to relive, to cherish, and to offer gratitude for all that has been seen, heard, experienced, and felt. It is a way to strengthen our call to racial justice, especially when we experience people who dispute what we have learned, confuse us, or actively work against the cause of racial justice and antiracism. In this meditation on the Road to Emmaus, we are invited to savor all we have experienced – including any despair and difficulties in our call to follow Jesus. 

Journaling can help us as we savor the graces of our experiences in prayer. We might consider journaling the ways we feel gratitude for our experiences with Christ over these months, seeing how Christ opened up the Scriptures and continues to break the bread so we might be sustained for our journey toward racial justice. 

Meditation: 20-30 minutes

I recall I am on the Road to Emmaus, walking towards a community filled with racial justice. Who walks with me? How do we support each other? What do we talk about? I recall how God has invited me to see anew, even if it is confusing at times. What stands out to me from the Discernment Series for Racial Justice? What meditation or new insight did I learn about racism, Jesus, my faith, and my church? Was I able to apply any of this to my work, family, or community? I thank God for the gift that is knowing Jesus more intimately in the journey for racial justice and healing. 

A third comes into my imagination – it is Jesus but I do not recognize him at first. He asks what we are discussing, and I tell him what resonates from my prayer. I recall how I have learned about the suffering of so many people over the course of this discernment series. Which stories do I tell him? Which groups resonate with me? What confuses me or continues to trouble me as I talk with him? I express gratitude that my newfound understanding of racism troubles my conscience as it is a sign of the Spirit of God working in me. 

What does he say back to me? How does he break open the Scriptures? As he speaks to me, how does my heart open and burn? What Scripture passages mean a lot to me as I reflect on his words and this Discernment Series? What do I say in response? I express gratitude for the ways in which my heart burns for racial justice. 

We share a meal together, and something feels familiar. What is it? How is this meal different because of the Discernment Series? Jesus breaks open the bread and my eyes are opened in a new way. What does he reveal to me? 

What feelings am I left with? How does gratitude, Easter joy, and delight surround me? Just as the Disciples run back to tell the others, so too am I invited by Jesus to take action to spread the Good News he offers us. How will I do that? 

Just as those on the Road to Emmaus are in community, who will be my community as we work to spread the Good News? Who might I connect with to talk about my experience in this Discernment Series?

Resource: Ignatian Spirituality

Questions for Reflection: