INTRODUCTION
Today’s readings explain how God, like a good shepherd, redeems His people and provides for them. The readings also challenge us to use our God-given authority in the family, in the Church, and in society, with fidelity and responsibility. Today, pastoral ministry includes not only the pastoral care given by those named or ordained as “pastors,” but the loving service given by all Christians who follow different callings to serve and lead others. The people of God are wounded and bleed. They need men and women shepherds after the heart of Jesus.
FIRST READING: Jeremiah 23:1-6
The prophet Jeremiah known as one of the major prophets lived around 650 BC. His ministry took place in Judah, the capital of Jerusalem. He was very blunt in condemning the evil around him. This attracted a lot of enemies for him. Even those he once considered as friends were against him. Such an experience caused great suffering to the prophet. He lamented severely. This gave him the name the “weeping prophet”. At the time of this prophecy, a good king in Judah had just been replaced by a king who allied Judah to Egypt. Jeremiah was sent by God to rage against this policy, reminding the people and the King that God’s people should trust in God, not in alliances with pagan nations. Some flattering “prophets” of the court backed the King and criticized Jeremiah. But Jeremiah remained a vigorous, courageous, outspoken man. In today’s reading, the prophet thunders his prophetic voice against the insensibility and irresponsibility of the ruling class towards the poor: “I gave you the privileges of a shepherd, you mislead and scatter the flock, I’m about to replace you, and My people will be restored!” Jeremiah launches the message of assurance to the people about God’s intention to give them a “new shepherd,” one who would lead the people according to the desire of Yahweh. Jeremiah’s prophetic denunciation of faithless servants in the Old Testament finds it’s full implication in our own time. We all have been conferred with the responsibility to exercise the function of leaders in different capacities in the Church, in our families and the in society in which we live. Therefore we are called to imitate God who cares for his sheep with affective and unconditional love. His desire is that of bringing people together, leading them and showing selfless concern. We are to be responsible Shepherds over the persons that God has entrusted to our care especially the weakest among the brothers, rather than taking personal advantage of them.
SECOND READING: Ephesians 2:13-18
Paul the zealous apostle celebrates the fulfillment of Jeremiah’s prophecy (first reading) of a future shepherd who would gather the dispersed and the scattered into one people of God. He indicates how Christ brought about reconciliation between ancient enemies, the Jews and the Gentiles. The appstle contracts the relationship of the Jews and the Gentiles with God in the words such as “near” and “far off” respectively. But by becoming Christians, those Jews, who had enjoyed God’s favor for so many generations, have now accepted Christ as the Messiah. These converted Gentiles brethren were for a very long time strangers before God as a result of their worship of pagan gods. Their conversion into the faith became a demonstration of the authenticity and potency of Christ’s intervention as a shepherd who reconciles and unifies in contrast to the shepherds of Jeremiah’s time who lacked the ability and zeal to bring the sheep together into one sheepfold. Hence, as Christians, whether we fall under the category of Jewish converts or Gentile converts, we are no more enemies no more but brothers and sisters, thanks to the reconciliation operated by Christ, through Christ and in Christ. The Law of Moses “with its commandments and legal claims” was serving to separate the Jewish converts who kept it from the Gentiles who didn’t know of it and didn’t. Like the Jews and Gentiles of Paul’s who were once living in apathy no simply because of their provenance but because of adherence to different ideologies, today the Church is still consumed by the spirit of apathy. Christians continue to live in the spirit of worldly political ideologies of the “left and right”, otherwise known as “liberals and conservatives”. Aren’t we pagans in the guise of Christians? It is unfortunate that the hostility grows progressively and continues to weaken the unity in the Church for which Christ prayed for (Jn 17:21). We are becoming more worldly than the world itself thus rendering the growth of the faith impossible. Who in his/her normal senses would be converted to a Church of disunity? Let us be on guard against hostility and fraction.
GOSPEL: Mk 6:30-34
One of the most popular attributes of God, one most invoked during christian liturgy is that of a merciful God. The penitential right that constitutes an important part of the introductory part of the mass is emblematic of how the Church professes faith on the mercy of God.
Today’s Gospel passage presents the merciful heart of Jesus who lovingly invites the apostles to a desolate place for some rest. Jesus had sent his apostles on their first healing, teaching and preaching mission to prepare the people they visited for the Coming of the Promised One, Jesus. When they returned, they were no doubt exhilarated by the experience. They had witnessed at first hand the power of God’s Word through their words and the works of their hands done in Jesus’ Name. Nonetheless, they were hungry, exhausted, and in need of rest, both physical and spiritual. In fact, Jesus was eager to hear about their missionary adventures as they proudly shared their experiences. But Jesus, too, was in need of a break from the crowds who were constantly pressing in, demanding attention and healing. Hence, he led the Apostles by boat to a “deserted place” on the other side of the Lake intending to give them all a period of rest and sharing. Today’s Gospel teaches that the Church must never grow tired of attending to the needs of the people. At the heart of her pastoral commitment is the service of compassion and reconciliation. Thus, the ministry of mercy is a viable means of healing our wounded and divided world that needs Shepherd-leaders.
1) “Sheep without shepherd:”
But when they came ashore there was a large crowd waiting for them. Jesus’ heart was moved with pity for those people who were “sheep without a shepherd.” Here the reference to the shepherd was probably to religious leaders, because at this time the Jews were an occupied people, and the real political power was in the hands of the pagan Romans. This brief description, “sheep without a shepherd,” is also dense with Biblical allusions. Like the people of Israel, the crowds were in the desert where they would receive not only miraculous food (next Sunday’s Gospel), but guidance and instruction, just as the Torah had been given in the desert of Sinai. “Sheep without s shepherd” will perish because a) they cannot find their way and will probably end up being eaten by a wolf or other carnivores b) they cannot find pasture, water, and food for themselves, and c) they have no defense against the dangers which threaten them. Jesus’ first act with these shepherd-less sheep was to teach them [v. 34] , then to feed them [vv. 35-40], and finally to protect the apostles (who were also His sheep), from the storm [vv. 45-52]. This text affirms Jesus’ extraordinary availability and his compassion for the needy. It teaches us that a Christian should be ready to sacrifice his time and even his rest in the service of the Gospel. (Fr. Anthony Kadavil).
LIFE MESSAGES
1) The Church has the double responsibility of teaching and feeding: People today find it difficult to balance those two aspects of the Christian life. Some apparently believe that the social ministry of the Church is all that is needed to make Christ present in the world. Others seem to believe that the Church’s major concern should be preaching the Gospel, rather than feeding the hungry and healing the sick. The Church’s duty, so the argument goes, is to spread the Gospel and provide for public worship. Both views are one-sided. There can be no true Christianity without the proclamation of the Gospel. Teaching the Word of God is essential to a Christian community. But that is only half of the story. Christians must also display the same compassion for the suffering that Jesus exhibited by meeting the social and material needs of others – even those who are not members of our Church.
2) The Church needs ideal pastors:
The pastor must be a man of compassion. He must be able to feel deeply the suffering of others, to understand why they fear and tremble. Pastors are also called to lead and “govern wisely” (Jer 23:5), living the teaching they communicate. They are to guide people in right paths and are to be concerned about what is right and just. Their pastoral care should be involved with the people’s needs, spiritual and material, and should provide peaceful care and guidance. There are very many people searching for truth today, people hungering for instruction, good people who are looking for direction. They may be parents who are sick with grief over the future of a troubled child; a man stripped of his dignity by unemployment; a woman facing a pregnancy alone; elderly people who feel the surge of life diminishing in their bodies; people who are angry and confused because they have lost confidence in their leaders, whether political or religious. They are people who are looking for answers and for meaning. They are like sheep without a shepherd. They all need ideal pastors filled with the spirit of Christ the “Good Shepherd.”
PRAYER
O Eternal God, your mercy knows no bound. You govern your people with compassion and love. You heal those who are wounded and bleed as a result of the sin. Keep us aglow in the light of your truth so that we may understand the richness of your paternal love O Eternal Shepherd. Lead us on the path of peace and reconciliation, so that we may reject what divides and embrace what unites. You who live and reign with the Son and the Holy Spirit, Eternal oneness, blessed unity, God forever and ever. Amen.
PAX VOBIS!
