HOMILY: Third Sunday of Easter (A)
Acts 2:14, 22–33 / 1 Peter 1:17–21 / Luke 24:13–35
19 April 2026
Fr. Ricky Cañet Montañez, AA
In recent years, something surprising has been happening in parts of the Western world. There has been a noticeable surge in people becoming Catholic—young professionals, students, even public figures. In societies often described as secular, many are rediscovering the faith. When asked why, many of them say, “I was searching… and I found something real.” Not new, not trendy, not invented—but something alive and grounded in truth.
This raises an important question for those of us who have been Catholic for a long time. Sometimes we say, “We already know that, Father. We are used to it.” And so, we begin to take our faith for granted.
It is at this point that today’s readings speak powerfully, urging us to move from a surface knowledge of Jesus… to a genuine recognition of who He is.
In the Gospel, the disciples on the road to Emmaus knew everything that had happened in Jerusalem. They knew the story, the events, the reports—every detail. However, when Jesus Himself drew near and walked with them, “their eyes were prevented from recognising Him” (Luke 24:16). He was already beside them, speaking with them… and yet they did not recognise Him.
It is a quiet yet unsettling truth: it is possible to know everything about Jesus—and still fail to see Him, and to know Him for who He truly is, even when He stands right before us.
In the First Reading, Peter tells the crowd, “Jesus the Nazorean was a man commended to you by God… as you yourselves know” (Acts 2:22). They knew Jesus. He lived among them. They saw Him grow up. They heard Him preach. They witnessed His miracles. They even saw His suffering and death.
Nevertheless, knowledge was not enough. Peter proclaims what it truly means: “God raised this Jesus; of this we are all witnesses” (Acts 2:32). In other words, faith is not just information. It is awakening—it is coming to see, to recognise, to believe.
Subsequently, Saint Peter reminds us in the Second Reading that Christ, “known before the foundation of the world,” was revealed for our sake, so that through Him we might believe in God (cf. 1 Peter 1:20–21). Now that we call God our Father, we are asked to live accordingly. He reminds us how much we are worth: “You were ransomed… not with perishable things like silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ” (1 Peter 1:18–19).
Our lives are not ordinary. They are not just routines or passing days. There is a deeper truth, a deeper presence—but do we recognise it?
There is nothing wrong with being familiar with our faith. But perhaps this is the danger: we have become so used to it that we begin to move through it without awareness. We attend Mass every Sunday. We hear the Gospel again and again. We receive the Eucharist.
But, do we still recognise Him?
Or have we become so familiar that we no longer notice when we are in His presence? Do we still show reverence before the altar and the tabernacle? Or do we simply pass by, no longer aware of Who is there?
Meanwhile, those who are newly discovering the Catholic faith often see with fresh eyes. They are filled with awe at the symbols, the rituals, the Eucharist. And we—perhaps—have lost that sense of wonder.
In Emmaus, recognition did not come immediately. It came when they listened to Him explain the Scriptures, when they stayed with Him, and finally, “their eyes were opened and they recognised Him in the breaking of the bread” (Luke 24:31).
Everything changed at that moment. Their hearts had already begun to burn — “Were not our hearts burning within us while He spoke to us on the way?” (Luke 24:32)—but now their eyes were opened. From confusion, they moved to clarity; from sadness, to mission.
Thus today, the invitation is not to learn something new, but to see with new eyes—to recognise Him again: in the Word we hear, in the Bread we receive, and in the ordinary moments of our lives.
Because the truth is both simple and challenging: the Lord is never lacking in presence… it is we who are often lacking in recognition.
We may know Jesus… but do we truly recognise Him?
Let us always remember that faith begins when we know Jesus… but it comes alive when we finally recognise Him.
Sunday Gospel Reflections 