20180222
SUSTAINING THE ZEAL OF THE SHEPHERD
Readings
at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: White.
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First reading
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1 Peter 5:1-4 ©
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Watch over the flock, not simply as a duty but gladly
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Now I have something to tell your elders: I am an elder myself,
and a witness to the sufferings of Christ, and with you I have a share in the
glory that is to be revealed. Be the shepherds of the flock of God that is
entrusted to you: watch over it, not simply as a duty but gladly, because God
wants it; not for sordid money, but because you are eager to do it. Never be a
dictator over any group that is put in your charge, but be an example that the
whole flock can follow. When the chief shepherd appears, you will be given the
crown of unfading glory.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 22(23) ©
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The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I
shall want.
The Lord is my shepherd;
there is nothing I shall want.
Fresh and green are the pastures
where he gives me repose.
Near restful waters he leads me,
to revive my drooping spirit.
The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I
shall want.
He guides me along the right path;
he is true to his name.
If I should walk in the valley of darkness
no evil would I fear.
You are there with your crook and your staff;
with these you give me comfort.
The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I
shall want.
You have prepared a banquet for me
in the sight of my foes.
My head you have anointed with oil;
my cup is overflowing.
The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I
shall want.
Surely goodness and kindness shall follow me
all the days of my life.
In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell
for ever and ever.
The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I
shall want.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Mt16:18
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Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
You are Peter,
and on this rock I will build my Church.
And the gates of the underworld can never hold out against it.
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
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Gospel
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Matthew 16:13-19 ©
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You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church
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When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi he put this
question to his disciples, ‘Who do people say the Son of Man is?’ And they
said, ‘Some say he is John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one
of the prophets.’ ‘But you,’ he said ‘who do you say I am?’ Then Simon Peter
spoke up, ‘You are the Christ,’ he said ‘the Son of the living God.’ Jesus
replied, ‘Simon son of Jonah, you are a happy man! Because it was not flesh and
blood that revealed this to you but my Father in heaven. So I now say to you:
You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church. And the gates of the
underworld can never hold out against it. I will give you the keys of the
kingdom of heaven: whatever you bind on earth shall be considered bound in
heaven; whatever you loose on earth shall be considered loosed in heaven.’
22 FEBRUARY, 2018, Thursday, Chair of St Peter, The Apostle
SUSTAINING THE ZEAL OF THE SHEPHERD
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ 1 Peter 5:1-4; Psalm 23:1-6; Matthew 16:13-19 ]
St Peter made
it clear from the outset that to be a shepherd is to be a witness to the
sufferings of Christ. He said, “I have something to tell your elders: I am elder
myself, and a witness to the sufferings of Christ.” This is something we
do not think much about. Many of us tend to focus on the privileges, the
limelight and the glory of being a shepherd of Christ. Some might even
think that priesthood can be an escape from the responsibilities of married
life; that it is just another form of a bachelor lifestyle with an iron rice
bowl. Indeed, this is the way the priestly and religious vocation
is sometimes being promoted. They show you pictures of the joy of
ministering to the people of God and living like brothers and sisters in the
community. It is the same for marriage as well. Often, married life
is presented in such a blissful and loving manner, one is persuaded to believe
it to be the ideal life, a lifelong romance every day.
But they do
not tell you as Jesus did, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny
themselves and take up their cross and follow me”. (Mt 16:24)
Indeed, it is only when you have become a priest, a religious or when you get
married, that you realize that the ideal and the reality do not match. It
is only a goal to be reached and to strive for. Unless we are prepared,
many of us will become disillusioned, whether we enter a priestly and religious
state of life or get married. We see many marriages start so well, but
when the reality of building strong relationships sets in, clouded by financial
and work issues, in-laws and children, sickness and the elderly, etc, some
cannot take it and want to divorce. So too many priests suffer
disillusionment and burn out when they get into the thick and thin of the
ministry; and some eventually leave the priesthood.
Often the
laity do not understand the challenges and sufferings of their shepherds. Conversely, priests
and religious are guilty too of not being able to identify with the struggles
of the ordinary man and woman, especially at work and family life. This
is understandable as we live in quite different worlds in terms of lifestyle,
needs and struggles. Although the situations are different, the
feelings are similar.
When St Peter
exhorted the elders to “be the shepherds of the flock of God that is entrusted to
you” it is often taken for granted. How many of us parents are always conscious of our role as
shepherds of the flock under our care? Do we see them as God’s children
entrusted to our care, or do we see them as our children and property for us to
dispose as we see fit? The truth is that priests often forget that the
people of God under their charge belong to God. We are only
caretakers. They do not belong to us and therefore we cannot do as we
wish with them, but only according to what the Lord wants of us. As
St Peter says, “because God wants it.”
This
situation happens because we see them as strangers and workers. There is a lack of
intimacy between the shepherd and the sheep. This can also happen between
parents and children when the former are seen as financial providers and
disciplinary masters. Many parents are so absorbed in their career,
business, work and their social life so much so they neglect to spend quality
and personal time with their children. So too for the priest. He is
more concerned with the work, the activities of the church, the administration,
but he does not know the sufferings, the aspirations and the struggles of his
people. This is why sometimes shepherds lack empathy for the sheep.
They are treated like a case that should be gotten rid of quickly.
Secondly, St
Peter exhorts the shepherd to “watch over it, not simply as a duty but
gladly.” Loving those who love us is easy. (cf Mt 5:46f)
But when those whom we love and sacrifice our life for take us for granted and
even bite the hand that feeds them, it is a different take. When
they misunderstand our kindness and actions, slander us in public, complain
about us and level charges against us that are not true, how do you continue to
love them gladly? When we are unappreciated, it is only natural for us to
retaliate or at least give up loving them. Isn’t this how parents and
workers feel when they are unappreciated, or worse still, accused of things
they never did?
Thirdly, St
Peter says, in exercising authority as a shepherd, “never be a dictator over
any group that is put in your charge.” Indeed, there are cases when
those in authority are dictatorial in the way they command those under their
charge. They make decisions without consultation and enforce rules
against the will of the larger community. But in many cases, the
real dictator is not the shepherd but the sheep under his or her charge.
They are the ones demanding that the shepherd does this and that.
Whatever decisions the shepherd makes, he or she is condemned by his or her
detractors and opponents. Everyone wants his or her opinion not just to
be heard but to be followed. This is the greatest challenge in any community
– fostering unity through persuasion to bring all to a common stance, because
the truth is that it is impossible to please everyone. That is why
some just give up and stop taking initiative, because there are just too many
opinions for just about everything. But of course, they too will be
condemned for being lazy and complacent. So they resign from
leadership!
This explains
why shepherds – priests, leaders and parents – suffer disillusionment and low
morale. Instead
of working for the love of the people, which was their initial motive, they do
exactly what St Peter warns us, not to work “for sordid money, but because you
are eager to do it.” The zeal and eagerness is often lost because of the
frustrations in leadership. When they experience rejection, alienation,
loneliness and fatigue, they start to look for compensation in their
lives. Some would indulge in worldly pleasures, socializing, eating and
drinking, holidaying, or just hang out with close friends who could give them
the consolation and support they need. Others, fed up with the ministry,
eventually leave and live their own lives. Those who do not leave because
they have no choice, become a problem to everyone, including themselves.
They end up as irritable, edgy, grumpy, angry and impatient priests.
How, then,
can anyone who is in leadership truly live out the call of St Peter to “be an
example that the whole flock can follow.”? How can we be calm in the
face of difficulties and challenges? How can we remain patient and
forgiving and not vindictive when we are accused falsely and
misunderstood? How can we continue to love and help those who are our
enemies and who hurt us and our name? It is indeed very challenging
to repay good for evil, kindness for injury.
There is only
one way, when the shepherds are in union with the Chief Shepherd, our Lord
Jesus Christ. Only when we are one with Christ our good shepherd, can we find
solace and consolation. We seek His consolation particularly in prayer
and meditation. With the psalmist, we say, “Fresh and green are the
pastures where he gives me repose. Near restful waters he leads me, to
revive my drooping spirit.” In prayer, we seek His wisdom. “He
guides me along the right path; he is true to his name. If I should walk
in the valley of darkness no evil would I fear. You are there with your
crook and your staff; with these you give me comfort.” Indeed, let our prayer
be, “The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.”
Secondly,
with St Peter, shepherds need to confess from their heart, “You are the Christ,
the Son of the living God.” Without this confession of faith in Christ, our
faith will be weak and built on sand. How else do we explain why priests,
religious and very active and zealous Catholics leave the Church because they
have been hurt or disillusioned? This is because their faith is founded
in human beings and in their activities, not on Christ as the Son of the Living
God. Only with this faith, could Jesus say to St Peter, “You are Peter
and on this rock I will build my Church. And the gates of the underworld can
never hold out against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven:
whatever you bind on earth shall be considered bound in heaven; whatever you
loose on earth shall be considered loosed in heaven.”
Only because
of our faith in Christ, can we submit in obedience to the Holy Father as the
Vicar of Christ on earth even though we might disagree with him. In humility, we recognize
him as the Lord’s appointed vicar for the Church. Being in union with the
Holy Father, is what today’s feast is inviting us to do. The chair of St
Peter speaks of his authority to govern and rule the Church. In the final
analysis, he has been given the gift of revelation in authentic teaching as
Jesus said, “Simon son of Jonah, you are a happy man! Because it was not flesh
and blood that revealed this to you but my Father in heaven.” By
extension, the local Church is invited to be in union with the local bishop,
just as he is in union with the Holy Father.
In the final
analysis, let us realize that as shepherds we do not work just for this world
but for the world to come. This is our ultimate dream. St Peter urges us in our
suffering to think of the destiny ahead of us; to consider the future of the
people we help and our future destiny. St Peter asked us to keep our eyes
on heaven. Our suffering is not an end itself but for our glory. St
Peter consoles us, “I have a share in the glory that is to be revealed. When
the chief shepherd appears, you will be given the crown of unfading
glory.” So we have only one life to live, let us live it well. We
have one love, for God and for His people, let us give all we can.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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