Talk:Road to Emmaus appearance/merged

The Road to Emmaus appearance refers to one of the early resurrection appearance of Jesus after his crucifixion and the discovery of the empty tomb. The Supper at Emmaus has been a popular artistic theme for depicting the supper Jesus had with two disciples after the encounter on the road.

Biblical accounts
The Gospel of describes the encounter on the road and the supper, and states that while a disciple named Cleopas was walking towards Emmaus with another disciple, they met Jesus. They did not recognise him, and discussed their sadness at recent events with him. They pursuaded him to come and eat with them, and in the course of the meal they recognise him.

The Gospel of has a somewhat similar episode that describes the appearance of Jesus to two disciples while they were walking in the country, at about the same time in the Gospel narrative. although it does not name the disciples or the destination as Emmaus:

Afterward Jesus appeared in a different form to two of them while they were walking in the country. These returned and reported it to the rest; but they did not believe them either.

The Gospel of Luke states that Jesus stayed and had supper with the two disciples, after the encounter on the road: As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus acted as if he were going farther. But they urged him strongly, "Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over." So he went in to stay with them. The detailed narration of this episode is at times considered one of the best sketches of a biblical scene in the Gospel of Luke. In this account, when Jesus appeared to Cleopas and one other disciple at first "their eyes were holden" so that they could not recognize him. Later "in the breaking of bread" "their eyes were opened" and they recognized him. B. P. Robinson argues that this means the recognition occurred in the course of the meal, but Raymond Blacketer notes that "Many, perhaps even most, commentators, ancient and modern and in-between, have seen the revelation of Jesus' identity in the breaking of bread as having some kind of eucharistic referent or implication."

Artistic renditions
Both the encounter on the road, and the ensuing supper have been depicted in art, but the supper has received more attention. Medieval art tends to show a moment before Jesus is recognised; Christ wears a large floppy hat to help explain the initial lack of recognition by the disciples. This is either a large pilgrim's hat and badges or a Jewish hat. However, the depiction of the next part of the episode, the supper at Emmaus, which shows Jesus eating with the disciples, has been a more popular theme, at least since the Renaissance. Often the moment of recognition is shown.

Rembrandt's 1648 depiction of the Supper, at the Louvre builds on the earlier etching he did six years earlier, in which the disciple on the left had risen, hands clasped in prayer. In both depictions the disciples are startled, and are in awe, but not in fear. The servant is oblivious to the theophanic moment taking place during the supper.

Both Caravaggio's painting in London and his painting in Milan (which were six years apart) imitate natural color very well, but fail in decorum. Caravaggio depicted Jesus without a beard and the London painting shows fruits on the table that are out of season. Moreover, the inn keeper is shown serving with a hat.

Some other artists who have portrayed the Supper are Jacopo Bassano, Pontormo, Vittore Carpaccio, Philippe de Champaigne, Albrecht Dürer, Benedetto Gennari,Jacob Jordaens, Marco Marziale, Pedro Orrente, Tintoretto, Titian, Velázquez and Paolo Veronese. The supper was also the subject of one of his most successful Vermeer forgeries by Han van Meegeren.

In literary art, the Emmaus theme is realized as early as in the 12th century by the Durham poet Laurentius in a semidramatic Latin poem.