Fourth Sunday of Easter
Acts 9:26-31; 1 Jn 3:18-24; Jn 15:1-8
I do not know how familiar you are with the image of the sheep and the shepherd. I understand that it is not a common image here in Brighton as it was in the middle east in Jesus's time. I mean I've never seen any sheep grazing in the front of the church and neither in the parking lots. In fact the last time I saw sheep was when I visited Plymouth Plantation a couple of weeks ago. In any case, I believe that the image of the shepherd that Jesus presents in today's Gospel is as effective an image as it was 2000 years ago.
Jesus describes himself as the Good Shepherd. Actually, most people would be surprised to learn that the translation must read, not the Good Shepherd, but the Beautiful Shepherd. And when I mean beauty here, I am not referring to something that is simply skin-deep. By beautiful I mean something that is much more than simply good. For us, good means simply doing well what you are meant to do. Beautiful on the other hand, exceeds all expectations.
Jesus is the Good, the Beautiful Shepherd because he is all this. He does not simply fulfill what is expected of any shepherd, but goes even further. He is the Good, Beautiful Shepherd because it is a goodness that attracts, and this is what draws the sheep towards their shepherd, something that does not happen when the shepherd is simply a hired man. Jesus is the Good, Beautiful Shepherd because he does something that no other shepherd would do: he gives his life for his sheep.
This point is quite particular in fact, because no matter how much a shepherd might love his sheep, ultimately they are at his service. The sheep after all provide their shepherd with milk, wool and meat. However with the Good Shepherd, it is not so, since it is Jesus who gives us life and not the other way round.
There is a certain intimacy that we can sense in the way that Jesus speaks of his sheep. The word "know", which as you know in the bible means "to be in an intimate relationship with" comes up at least four times: The Good Shepherd knows his sheep and the sheep know him just as the Father knows the Son and the Son knows the Father.
Therefore a question comes up almost automatically: Do I know the good shepherd? Do I recognise his voice? Or perhaps do I have the tendency of being led astray, perhaps by other shepherds whose goodness and beauty is deceptive? Unfortunately it is very easy to loose sight of the Good Shepherd when there are many other hired shepherds competing for our attention and which rob us from our hope?
Today, being the Fourth Sunday of Easter, every year the readings are of the Good Shepherd and we also celebrate World Vocations Day. Pope Francis issued a message as popes have done year after year for the past 55 years. He reminds us that when we speak of vocations we are referring not only to the priesthood but also to the vocation of Catholic marriage and to religious life. In fact, just as Christians, just as we all try and follow the Good Shepherd, we too try and lead our brothers and sisters in faith. Just as we all need to be evangelised by the Good News, so must we evangelise others by sharing with them the Good News. There are so many opportunities of doing so if we are sensitive. In fact, Pope Francis offers three actions that we must undertake.
- Listen: Listen to the Word of God but listen also to the particular calling that God has for you.
- Discern: Grow in your ability of reading deeply into your life to understand where and what you are called to do by the Lord.
- Live: Living in the present moment, here and now, which is the time and place where we are called by God to live our vocation and mission as Christians.
I would like to conclude with prayer of hope and encouragement taken from the latest letter of Pope Francis, called Rejoice and Be Glad.
May you come to realize what that word is,
the message of Jesus that God wants to speak to the world by your life.
Let yourself be transformed.
Let yourself be renewed by the Spirit,
so that this can happen,
lest you fail in your precious mission.
The Lord will bring it to fulfillment despite your mistakes and missteps,
provided that you do not abandon the path of love
but remain ever open to his supernatural grace,
which purifies and enlightens.
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