ghost

In the twenty-fourth chapter of the Gospel According to Luke (NABRE), Jesus appears to his disciples for the first time after he has been raised from the dead. In the Catholic lectionary and the New American Bible Revised Edition (NABRE), the Evangelist records that at Jesus’ appearance, the disciples were afraid because they thought he might be a ghost.

The English word ghost is derived from an old English word that means “spirit.” Likewise the Greek word pneuma means “spirit.” While it’s technically correct to translate pneuma as ghost rather than spirit, the connotation can be misleading since our understanding of ghosts may not be the same as what was understood at the time the Gospel According to Luke was written.

Either way, Jesus calms the fears of his disciples by eating in front of them, something a non-corporeal entity wouldn’t have been able to do. What difference do you think it makes that Jesus is corporeal? What important point does this encounter make about the Resurrection?

related topic: demonic possession

you also may like our study of Saul, David & Solomon
The United Kingdom of Israel: Saul, David & Solomon Foreshadow Christ the King, a 28-lesson Catholic Bible study with an imprimatur, provides an in-depth look at the First and Second Books of Samuel to learn how the lives of the monarchs Saul, David, and Solomon point ahead to the kingdom of heaven. The unified reign of King David is seen as a foreshadowing or type of the unity that is one of the four marks of the Church—the kingdom of God—established by Jesus Christ. Click on the book’s cover to view a sample lesson.

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