One for the Road

We sang the above hymn, “Two Were Bound for Emmaus” by Bob Hurd at Mass last Sunday, and I was struck by its beauty. The Road to Emmaus has always been one of my favorite Gospel readings, perhaps because it covers so much ground: the desolation of the disciples after Christ’s crucifixion; the irony of their thinking that Jesus was the only person “who does not know of the things that have taken place,” when, in fact, He is the only one who knows it; the way He unpacks the Scriptures for them; and the way they recognize Him in the breaking of the bread — that is, in the Real Presence of the Holy Eucharist.

I think I enjoy this hymn so much because it covers the same range of experience and emotions:

Two were bound for Emmaus,
disheartened and lost;
all their hope for the future
had been nailed to a cross.
Love Unknown then walked beside them,
come back from the dead,
and they knew He was risen
in the breaking of bread.

Of course, the story of the Road to Emmaus has some special poignancy for runners. How often do we take our desolation, our doubts, or our frustrations on the road with us, only to meet Him unexpectedly — and receive His consolation — along the way? How often is the weariness of a long trek (I’ve read that the distance from Jerusalem to Emmaus is about 7 miles) suddenly wiped out by that profound moment of prayer, that instance of surrender, where His presence becomes unmistakable?

And with running in mind, this verse of the hymn really hits home:

When the road makes us weary,
when our labor seems but loss,
when the fire of faith weakens
and too high seems the cost,
let the Church turn to its risen Lord,
who for us bore the cross,
and we’ll find our hearts burning
at the sound of his voice.

I think I need to put this one on my mp3 player!