INTRODUCTION
“Well Lord, it’s your Church, You take care of it; I am going to sleep.”
The above statement was attributed to St. Pope John XXIII as part of his night prayers. It is short but profound in meaning because it expresses an attitude of one who understood that he was just an instrument in the hand of the Master; an ambassador to the Eternal Shepherd. Instead of going to bed with a load of worries about the Church, he would simply hand it over to the rightful owner.
On this Fourth Sunday of Easter, the Church celebrates ‘The Shepherd Sunday’, in which Pope Paul VI in 1963 designated as a world day of prayer for vocations (to the priesthood and consecrated life). The invitation is not just to pray for vocations, but for God to fill His Church with shepherds in the image and likeness of Christ, the Good Shepherd.
Thus the readings today lay emphasis on what it means to be a good shepherd. The first reading shows that through the Apostle’s conformity to the image of Christ, 3,000 sheep were added to the sheepfold, the Church. In the second reading, Peter professes Christ as the Shepherd who not only heals those wounded by sin but also a Guardian of their souls. And in the Gospel, John affirms that Jesus is not only ‘The Shepherd’, He is equally ‘The Door’ that secures all who enter through Him.
FIRST READING: Acts 2:14a, 36-41
Intoxicated by the ‘New Wine of the Spirit’, Peter proclaimed the Christological formula: “God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus Whom you crucified.”
The guilt of the people cut them to the heart, and in response they begged; “Brethren, what shall we do?” This is a voice expressing human misery; the voice of a strayed sheep. It was the same question the people asked John the Baptist when he preached the baptism of repentance (Luke 3:10).
Peter did not hesitate to offer the remedy. He knew from his personal experience of denying his master, that God offers those who repent a second chance. The invitation was to repent. It is from the greek word ‘metanoa’, a combination of ‘meta’ (after, beyond, a change) and ‘nous’ (mind), which literally means, ‘change of mind.’
And the conclusion of the reading is in fact in line with the message of today: ““Then those who gladly received his word were baptized. There were added that day about three thousand souls.” The new sheepfold of Christ (the Church) can only be entered through the gate of repentance and of baptism. That is why in the rite of baptism, the candidate can only receive baptism after having denied satan and sin and professed the faith of the Church.
SECOND READING: 1 Peter 2:20b-25
There was no better way Peter could have expressed the identity of Jesus as ‘The Shepherd’ than making reference to his redemptive passion:“He himself bore our sins in his body upon the cross, so that, free from sin, we might live for righteousness. By his wounds, you have been healed. For you had gone astray like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd, the guardian of your souls” (vv. 24-25).
The Apostle did not only see our redemption in the light of the death of Christ on the cross, but that if we have identity, it is because we gained it from his death on the cross. Before his death, we were lost, but now we have not only been found but our souls are equally safe.
This teaching of Peter is part of the collections of the kerygma of the early Church.
GOSPEL: John 10:1-10
The beauty of John’s gospel is evident in his manner of captivating the attention of his readers through familiar imagery. For Matthew, Mark and Luke it was probably unthinkable to tell their audience about Jesus with the use of imagery. But John was so keen in using them in reference to Jesus. First, he called Him the “Lamb of God” (Jn. 1:29); and in his apocalyptic vision, he called Him the “Lion of the tribe of Judah” (Rev. 5:5). Today, he did not only refer to Jesus as the ‘Shepherd’, but he equally called Him ‘the gate to the sheepfold.’
In the preceding chapter (Jn. 9), Jesus healed a man born blind, but the religious authority used all possible means to bastadize the miracle and to project a negative image of Jesus. And when the man who had been made well refused to be intimidated by their persistent questions, and rather affirmed the divine power of Jesus, he was ejected from the Temple (Jn. 9:34). Having heard about what happened, Jesus came to look for him and eventually found him and made him to profess faith in Him (v.35). The chapter 10 of today’s Gospel of John is simply a continuation of Jesus’ discourse in the previous chapter since it maintained the same setting and the same audience. Thus, Jesus’ healing of the man born blind, and welcoming him after being ejected from the Temple, was a good opportunity seized by the evangelist John to launch today’s Gospel of Jesus the Good Shepherd who not only seek out to heal the wounded sheep (like the man born blind) but also the Door that grants them access to the new sheepfold. The chapter 9 which ended with Jesus’ confrontation of the Pharisees as ‘blind leaders’ makes it clear that the ‘thief’ He speaks of today (who kills and destroys) are the religious leaders of His time. In contrast, Jesus’ mission is to set up a ‘new fold’ whereby the wounded can be healed, welcomed and made to feel secure. He is that Good Shepherd who knows His sheep, and whose sheep hear His voice and follow Him (the man recognized Jesus and went to him).
This image of Jesus presented by John in today’s Gospel is meant to connect his readers to the prophesy of Ezekiel where God noticing the failure of the shepherds He entrusted with the care of His sheep, vowed to take over the responsibility of taking care of His sheep by Himself as ‘The Good Shepherd’ (Ez. 34:1-34).
Hence, John points to Jesus as the New Shepherd of the new flock (the new house of Israel; the new people of God) who has come to take over the care of His sheep who have long suffered the oppression and the negligence of the shepherds. And John added something new to His identity. He called Him “The Door of the sheepfold.” The sheepfolds mentioned in few passages of the Old Testament offer identity of ownership and sense of belonging to the sheep (Nb. 32:16.24.36; 1 Sam. 24:3; Jgs. 5:16; 2 Chron. 32:28; Ps. 78: 70; Zeph. 2:6).
The emblematic description of Jesus as the door to the sheepfold refers to the fact that nothing evil can enter through Him. He not leads them out for pasture, He is equally the door of their safety. Yes, Jesus is the only access way to the Father. He is the only mediator between man and God. No one who enters through Him will be lost, and He secures His people from ‘wide beasts.’
LIFE MESSAGE
1. WE CAN ALSO BE GOOD SHEPHERDS
In his first chrism mass as Pope (March 28, 2013), the holy father Pope Francis says, ‘We are only good shepherds when we wear the odour of the sheep entrusted to our care.’
The readings today (especially the gospel) draw our attention not as spectators of the attitude of Jesus, but to imitate Him. The tendency many of us have is to think that the term shepherd is limited to the ordained ministers in the Church. It is a generic term. All of us have those entrusted to our care as priests, parents, teachers, government personnel, doctors and nurses, and caregivers in all forms and categories. We have every obligation to take care of the sheep entrusted to us especially the weak and the wounded. They are not just recipients of our services, but they are God’s gift to us to be cherished. Many of us have allowed them to slip off our hands and wandered away. Some of them are wounded and are bleeding profusely yet we cannot notice it. We can never be good shepherds unless we are connected to Jesus. It is only in Him and through Him we can derive strength and inspiration.
2. WE MUST BE GOOD SHEEP IN THE FOLD
We can only express our faith in communion with the Church and not in rebellion. The Church is our mother and the sheepfold of Christ. All of us are called to cooperate with Jesus as obedient sheep. How do we cooperate with Him in our local churches? Do we see His image in our local pastors who though are also prone to wounds and weaknesses as we are; and while still bleeding try to heal our wounds through their various ministries. If we keep in mind that there is only One Shepherd (Jesus), and that the ministers in the Church are just collaborators, then we must learn to help them to regain healing whenever they are wounded too. Let us not be on the side of rebellion and criticism, but on the side of praying for them, and giving them helpful suggestions and loving corrections with humility when necessary.
3. OUR LIVES MUST BE A LIVING GRATITUDE TO JESUS
We have always wandered away, and yet Jesus found us. Oh how often has He travelled far and wide, wallowing in the thick forest in searching of us because we are so precious to Him! He is often wounded by the thorns and thick bush. He keeps bleeding, and yet not discouraged until He finds us.We have often wandered why He has to leave the Ninety-nine to search for the lost one. Yes, we cannot understand the mystery behind such a ‘foolish attitude’ of Jesus until we notice that we are actually that lost sheep. What a love! Let every day of our life be a gratitude to Jesus who does for us what no one else can do.
PRAYER
Father, we raise our eyes to you in humble supplication for your Church to keep her always pure as the bride of your Son for we know that You Eternal Shepherd, do not desert your flock, but through the blessed Apostles watch over it and protect it always, so that it may be governed by those you have appointed shepherds to lead it in the name of your Son. Amen.
(Excerpt of the Preface 1 of the Apostles).
PAX VOBIS!
