The Road to Emmaus and the Church Hurt

In 2013, Pope Francis talked about the New Evangelization and referenced the Road to Emmaus to encourage accompanying those who have been disappointed and disillusioned by the church.

Nowadays there are many people like the two disciples of Emmaus; not only those looking for answers in the new religious groups that are sprouting up, but also those who already seem godless, both in theory and in practice. Faced with this situation, what are we to do?

We need a Church unafraid of going forth into their night. We need a Church capable of meeting them on their way. We need a Church capable of entering into their conversation. We need a Church able to dialogue with those disciples who, having left Jerusalem behind, are wandering aimlessly, alone, with their own disappointment, disillusioned by a Christianity now considered barren, fruitless soil, incapable of generating meaning.

I would like all of us to ask ourselves today: are we still a Church capable of warming hearts? A Church capable of leading people back to Jerusalem? Of bringing them home? Jerusalem is where our roots are: Scripture, sacraments, community, friendship with the Lord... Are we still able to speak of these roots in a way that will revive a sense of wonder at their beauty?

I believe our mission team is going forth into the night, using a spiritual language that evokes a sense of beauty, to engage those who are spiritually curious, yet church hurt, and lead them to an encounter with Jesus.

Unfortunately, many spiritual seekers have negative associations with churchy words. Jesus is associated with guilt and shame. God is associated with disappointment and unanswered prayers. Church is known as a community that says it is welcoming and loving, but instead proves to be the opposite.

New Age spiritual seekers love words like divine, energy, healing, unity, oneness, spirit ... So, we use words like these, and we talk about The Healer (Jesus), The Creator (God), The Spirit of Truth (The Holy Spirit), and Infinite Love (The Trinity).

A seeker said, "I don't normally like the word "prayer." I've had some bad experiences with it. But you said you pray, and I am curious, who do you pray to?" I said, "I pray to the Triune God. I believe in the Creator, who created all things and He created them good, including myself. The Healer, who fixes and restores all things when we break them; ourselves, our bodies, our relationship with others. The Great Spirit, who is with us always, teaches us all things, and guides our way.

I invite you to play with a creative language that revives a sense of wonder.

About the Author

Nova worked inside church walls, evangelizing and building programs for those in the pews, for 12 years. In 2022, she followed Jesus into the nucleus of the New Age people group. She realized they are seeking Jesus and understood His great love for them. She is now developing a ministry to the New Age.

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