Walking with Jesus My dear Brothers and Sisters in Jesus Christ, We live in a world which operates at full speed all the time. Everyone seems to focus so much on the demands of our material existence that we simply don’t have the time or patience to pay attention to and serve others. We shouldn’t place the blame solely on the present generation, however; from the beginning of humanity, we, as human beings have, in our own self-serving manner, not paid much attention to the effects of our behavior on others. This started with Adam and Eve, who did not think it through before eating the forbidden fruit. In contrast to this behavior, when we make the effort to walk with Jesus, then our minds become clearer and more focused on the world as Jesus saw it. This struggle was true for the disciples as well. In the first reading, we hear about St. Peter announcing the Good News of God’s love. It seems ironic because he literally walked with Jesus Christ for three years, yet still denied Him three times. Even after encountering the Risen Lord, he was not ready to boldly preach. Only after the outpouring of the Holy Spirit was he prepared to bring the Good News to the ends of the earth as Jesus commanded them. St. Peter never gave up on himself and he continued to walk with Jesus till the end. There is this famous phrase ‘Quo Vadis?’ which means ‘where are you going?’ There is an apocryphal story of Peter that causes reflection. At the point of giving up his life for Jesus, St. Peter would try to run away from Rome; then, he would see Jesus walking with His Cross towards Rome and St. Peter would ask Him, “Where are you going?” Jesus said that He was going to die again in Rome since Peter was running away. St. Peter then turned around and went back to truly die for Jesus, crucified upside down, convinced that he was not worthy of dying like his Master. Peter finally understood the price of walking with Jesus. The Gospel story of two of the disciples on their walk to Emmaus is a beautiful narration of how we can truly become in tune with God by walking with Jesus. The disciples’ eyes were not fully open; they did not recognize the presence of Jesus, though their hearts were burning as Jesus explained to them all the Scripture passages about Him. Walking with God is not easy; Jesus had constantly warned His disciples of that. But, if we truly open our hearts to walk with Jesus, then our lives would change immensely. In every aspect of life, let us look upon Jesus as St. Bonaventure urges us: “In all your deeds and words you should look upon this Jesus as your model. Do so whether you are walking or keeping silence, or speaking, whether you are alone or with others.” May our walk with Jesus throughout our lives become so fruitful that we experience His presence more every single day. May God bless us all.