Images of Christ: The Road to Emmaus

Rowena Loverance writes about a mosaic by John Piper

by Rowena Loverance 21st April 2017

The post-Resurrection appearances of Jesus are for me the most beautiful, but also the most problematical, parts of the Gospels. They have inspired some of the greatest works by some of our most highly revered artists – just think of Titian’s ‘Noli me tangere’ and Caravaggio’s ‘Supper at Emmaus’ in London’s National Gallery alone. Yet biblical scholarship informs us that Mark’s Gospel, the earliest of the four, made do without any such appearances – so they were apparently not essential to the faith of the earliest Christians. In the interests of historical accuracy, should we, similarly, try to manage without them?