Emmaus

Emmaus was a village some distance from Jerusalem to which two disciples of Jesus were traveling on the afternoon of the day of resurrection, when the risen Christ joined them incognito. The name is of uncertain etymology, possibly derived from a Hebrew root meaning warm springs or warm baths. The Gospel of Luke records the distance as sixty stadia (about seven miles), though some manuscripts give 160 stadia, a discrepancy that has fueled debate about the site's identification.

The narrative of the Emmaus road is among the most detailed resurrection accounts in the Gospels: the disciples' downcast conversation, Christ's exposition of scripture from Moses and the prophets, and the moment of recognition at the breaking of bread in which he vanished from sight. The episode has been profoundly influential in Christian liturgy and spirituality as a paradigm of Christ's presence in scripture and the Eucharist. Several sites have been proposed for Emmaus, including Nicopolis (Imwas), Abu Ghosh, and el-Qubeibeh, without scholarly consensus.