A young couple receives the wonderful news: they are pregnant.

But their joy soon becomes a nightmare.  Her severe morning sickness debilitates her; her doctor discovers the child is in distress and plans for the worst.  She is confined to bed for the duration of her pregnancy.

The dad-to-be is overwhelmed by it all.  Unable to offer any meaningful help to his wife or his child, he buries himself in everything but accomplishes little.

But along the way, their parents – gently and quietly – cover many of the day-to-day details; they check in regularly with encouragement and advice, allaying many of their fears.  Co-workers at his office take as many things as they can off his desk.  And, under the radar, members of their parish organize to provide supper a few nights a week.

And they manage.  After a long, painful, terrifying few months, they welcome their little girl, healthy and whole.  And, along the way, the new parents discover again how much they love each other and the beautiful little family they have created.

And they realize, too, what their love means to those around them.

We all have our Emmaus-like experiences of fear, confusion, dread, worry.  But along the way, Christ makes himself known in our midst in the loving support of family and friends, of our community and parish.  Christ travels with us on our own road to Emmaus; Christ is present in the broken bread of compassion we offer and receive from our fellow travellers.  Easter faith is to recognize the Risen One in our midst: in our wanting to understand, in our struggle to make things right, in our brokenness.

In Luke’s Gospel, the first time Jesus makes himself known after his resurrection is not at the tomb or in the temple or in Jerusalem.  It’s in someone’s kitchen, at a meal when Jesus and two friends break bread together.  For the first Christians, this story was cherished as they celebrated the Eucharist. But the Risen Christ is also in our midst when we gather with one another at our family tables to break bread, to pray together, to “mark” the love that binds us together as family – when we realize the presence of God in the everyday and the ordinary, in the simple and the comfortable.  On this Sunday of the Easter season, may we re-discover Jesus with our loved ones at our family tables.

May our Easter celebration open our hearts and spirits to recognize Christ among us in every moment of our lives, in both the bright promising mornings and the dark terrifying nights. And having recognised Him, may we not stay where we are—but, like them, rise up and go back into the world with renewed faith, hope, and love.