by Terenzio Pastore

“Hearts on fire, eyes opened, and feet on the move“: this is how Pope Francis summarized the faith journey of the disciples of Emmaus, the icon of this October mission month. 

This is the month that reminds us of the Church’s mission, a mission entrusted to each of us, a mission that affects our daily lives.

As we remember those in the Church, in our CPPS Communities and in the Communities entrusted to us, despite their own limits, trying to live out their missionary nature, there is much to rejoice and to give thanks for!

Let us praise and thank the Lord for the ardent hearts of those who say their definitive “Yes” to God’s call, for parents and grandparents who make a gift of themselves for their children and grandchildren, for those who sow peace, for those who care for the sick and elderly, for those who constantly devote themselves to prayer, for those who carry out works of charity, for those who make their jobs a mission and, thus, sanctify them.

Let us praise and thank the Lord for the eyes of young people who open themselves to the encounter with Jesus to taste the beauty of his love, but also for the countless times when God’s mercy, by making us recognize our misery, uplifts us.

Let us praise and thank the Lord for the priests, religious men and women, and lay people who, with confidence and courage, continue to have feet on the move to proclaim the Gospel to anyone and in any way.

When we experience, however, that our hearts are tepid, our eyes dull, and we have no desire to move on, the Gospel of the disciples of Emmaus reminds us that Jesus is always with us: with His Word and the “breaking of bread”, He makes us reborn to new life.