Homilies

4th SUNDAY OF EASTER: GOOD SHEPHERD SUNDAY

THIS SUNDAY IS traditionally called the Good Shepherd Sunday. In ancient times in Palestine, sheep were raised for wool, and not usually for meat. Interestingly, the sheep were like pets to the shepherd. He would call them with a distinctive voice, and the sheep would come for him. The shepherd provided food, water, and protection to the sheep. Also, the sheep were led, and not driven. When the shepherd called them, the sheep followed.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus uses the image of the shepherd and the sheep to describe his relationship with his followers. The intimacy of the relationship between the shepherd and the sheep tells also of the relationship between the Father and the Son. Let us try to reflect more on this relationship between the Jesus the Shepherd and the sheep.

On the one hand, Jesus the Good Shepherd demonstrates a deep sense of commitment and responsibility towards us, his sheep. There are two phrases from the Gospel passage which describe this. The first one is, “I know them.” The element of knowledge is important on the part of the shepherd. Jesus knows his sheep. In the same way, every good shepherd knows his sheep. I have friend who used to be a devout Catholic, but now she left the Catholic Church and became a member of a Christian community. Accordingly, she likes her new community because she is known by their pastor, since the pastor spends more time with members. Well, this could be easily understood because their community can be much smaller compared to a Catholic parish.  But this also should not be a reason that Catholic pastors offer for their neglect. Instead, this is a lesson that Catholic pastors should learn. Finding time to know one’s sheep is indeed important. Likewise, the second saying is, “I give them eternal life.”  A good shepherd cares for his sheep by providing food, water, and protection. Jesus the Good Shepherd gives more than these. He offers eternal life to his sheep. In fact, he gave his life for his sheep; he died on the cross for our sake. The Good Shepherd became the Lamb of God to take away the sin of the world.

On the other hand, the sheep should also be intimate with their shepherd. Similarly, there are two gospel phrases to describe this. The first one: the sheep “hear my voice.” What does it mean to hear the voice of Jesus? Well, we need to stop from our preoccupations, and nurture our relationship with the Lord.  Time is a crucial and essential element in this relationship. All relationships need time in order to grow and to deepen. This means we need to spent time for prayer. But what kind of prayer? We, Filipinos, are too devotional in our piety, and thus, our tendency is to talk more than listen. Let us also give a chance for God to talk to us and listen to him. Also, listening to Jesus would also mean reading the Scriptures and meditate on it. Often, reading the Scriptures can be frustrating because the words do not penetrate us. But we must continue doing it even when nothing seems to happen. The second phrase is: the sheep “follow me.” In the situation of the sheep, hearing the voice is a key to following their shepherd. When they hear the voice, they immediately follow. Following can be problematic these days because of our failure to listen to the voice of our Church pastors or shepherds. The teachings of the Lord Jesus have been entrusted to the Church and to its leaders. But the tendency of modern people is to choose which teachings to follow, and usually they observe those they find easy and comfortable. This does not make ourselves good sheep. 

In this Good Shepherd Sunday, let us pray, not only for our Church leaders, but also for our government leaders that they may find in Jesus the Good Shepherd an example for governing. Let us pray that they will spend time in knowing more their constituents and show that they care for them, because that is the reason why they are put to such position.

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