20200503 EVERY VOCATION IS FOR THE SERVICE OF TRUTH, LOVE AND LIFE
03 May, 2020, Sunday, 4th Week of Easter
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour: White.
First reading
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Acts 2:14,36-41 ©
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'God has made him both Lord and Christ'
On the day of Pentecost Peter stood up with the Eleven and addressed the crowd in a loud voice: ‘The whole House of Israel can be certain that God has made this Jesus whom you crucified both Lord and Christ.’
Hearing this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the apostles, ‘What must we do, brothers?’ ‘You must repent,’ Peter answered ‘and every one of you must be baptised in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise that was made is for you and your children, and for all those who are far away, for all those whom the Lord our God will call to himself.’ He spoke to them for a long time using many arguments, and he urged them, ‘Save yourselves from this perverse generation.’ They were convinced by his arguments, and they accepted what he said and were baptised. That very day about three thousand were added to their number.
Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 22(23) ©
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The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.
or
Alleluia!
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.
or
Alleluia!
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.
or
Alleluia!
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.
or
Alleluia!
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.
or
Alleluia!
Second reading
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1 Peter 2:20-25 ©
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You have come back to the shepherd of your souls
The merit, in the sight of God, is in bearing punishment patiently when you are punished after doing your duty.
This, in fact, is what you were called to do, because Christ suffered for you and left an example for you to follow the way he took. He had not done anything wrong, and there had been no perjury in his mouth. He was insulted and did not retaliate with insults; when he was tortured he made no threats but he put his trust in the righteous judge. He was bearing our faults in his own body on the cross, so that we might die to our faults and live for holiness; through his wounds you have been healed. You had gone astray like sheep but now you have come back to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.
Gospel Acclamation
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Jn10:14
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Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the good shepherd, says the Lord;
I know my own sheep and my own know me.
Alleluia!
Gospel
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John 10:1-10 ©
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I am the gate of the sheepfold
Jesus said:
‘I tell you most solemnly, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold through the gate, but gets in some other way is a thief and a brigand. The one who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the flock; the gatekeeper lets him in, the sheep hear his voice, one by one he calls his own sheep and leads them out. When he has brought out his flock, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow because they know his voice. They never follow a stranger but run away from him: they do not recognise the voice of strangers.’
Jesus told them this parable but they failed to understand what he meant by telling it to them.
So Jesus spoke to them again:
‘I tell you most solemnly,
I am the gate of the sheepfold.
All others who have come
are thieves and brigands;
but the sheep took no notice of them.
I am the gate.
Anyone who enters through me will be safe:
he will go freely in and out
and be sure of finding pasture.
The thief comes
only to steal and kill and destroy.
I have come
so that they may have life and have it to the full.’
EVERY VOCATION IS FOR THE SERVICE OF TRUTH, LOVE AND LIFE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ Acts 2:14.36-41; Ps 23; 1 Peter 2:20-25; Jn 10:1-10 ]
It is right that we seek to have authentic and exemplary leaders to guide us and lead us in life. Unless we have the right leaders, the organization and the community will suffer eventually. Because leaders hold authority and have influence, they can empower or impoverish those under their care. Every family, organization, government and religion needs to have good leaders to shepherd the people under their charge. Yet, there are leaders and there are those who lead. Some are just leaders! But real leaders are those who lead by example and those who truly care and serve their people. These are the leaders that inspire people to follow them because they know that the leaders are not serving themselves but serving them. Following such leaders ultimately is for our sake and our good. It is within this context that we celebrate Good Shepherd Sunday today. We are called to learn from Jesus who is our Good Shepherd since we all are called to be good shepherds in our own way.
The Good Shepherd is one who seeks to lead his sheep to greener pastures so that his people can find rest and peace. This is what the psalmist says. “Fresh and green are the pastures where he gives me repose. Near restful waters he leads me, to revive my drooping spirit. He guides me along the right path; he is true to his name.” The Good Shepherd is always thinking of how to better the life of his sheep and not his own life or his own comfort. This is what the Lord says in the gospel. “I have come so that they may have life and have it to the full.” Again, this was the basis of St Peter’s first homily. He preached the homily not to gain attention for himself but for the good of the people. He said to them, “The promise that was made is for you and your children, and for all those who are far away, for all those whom the Lord our God will call to himself.” This is the hope and vision that inspired Peter to share the Good News about Jesus and the gift of Baptism with his listeners. It was so that they could also have a share of Christ’s life and the gift of the Holy Spirit. The psalmist says, “You have prepared a banquet for me in the sight of my foes.”
Secondly, the Good Shepherd must also guide and form his people in their values and vocation in life so that they can live meaningful lives. This was what Peter did. “He spoke to them for a long time using many arguments, and he urged them, ‘Save yourselves from this perverse generation.’ They were convinced by his arguments, and they accepted what he said and were baptised. That very day about three thousand were added to their number.” Teaching and enlightening our people in the way of truth and love is what good leadership entails. The Good Shepherd “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, as Jesus warns us, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.” This is a reference to the Jewish leaders who rejected Jesus. Instead of leading their people to greener pastures, they took away the blessings meant for them. They prevented the people from coming to know Christ because of their blindness and refusal to accept Jesus. When leaders mislead people in the truth, they too belong to that category of thieves that come to steal, kill and destroy. Indeed, we just have to examine the values that some leaders are promoting in the world today, supposedly for the good of their people. How could promoting the culture of death by allowing abortion until just before birth, or legalizing euthanasia and drug consumption be for the good of the community? How could promoting the culture of perverted love in promiscuity, irregular relationships and sexual orgies be considered as helping our people to find true love? How could the destruction of marriages and family life be considered something good for society? The truth is that such leaders have succumbed to the propaganda of powerful and influential people who control the media, industries and economy. These are selfish people who seek to satisfy their own ambitions for power, money and pleasures. They are self-serving. Their heart is not for the ultimate good of the people.
In the light of what a leader is called to do, the question that we should also ask is what the people asked Peter, “Hearing this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the apostles, ‘What must we do, brothers?” The answer is clear. “You must repent, and every one of you must be baptised in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Repentance of our sins, our selfishness and our blindness are the first steps towards being good leaders. We must first acknowledge where we fail as leaders in serving our family and organization.
Secondly, “we must be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins.” Being baptized is more than just going through water baptism and performing the ritual of having water poured over our heads. Rather, to be baptized means to put on Christ so that we will share the same mind and heart of our Lord. To be baptized means that as true shepherds of our Lord, we must enter “the sheepfold through the gate.” Jesus is that Gate that shepherds after Him must enter before they could be genuine leaders because it is in Him that we learn to be true shepherds. The Lord said, “The one who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the flock; the gatekeeper lets him in, the sheep hear his voice, one by one he calls his own sheep and leads them out.” However, one who “gets in some other way is a thief and a brigand.” If we seek to be true shepherds, we must turn to Christ, contemplating Him so that we become shepherds after His own heart and mind. Unless we have the heart of the Good Shepherd, the sheep will not recognize us, neither will we recognize them as our sheep because we do not know them or care for their interests.
Thirdly, we must receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. This is the gift of love, truth, wisdom, and not just the charisms for leadership. The forgiveness of sins through the death of Jesus and the consequent bestowal of the Spirit of love gives the leader the grace to suffer patiently and lovingly for the greater good of his people. Unless a leader is gracious, forgiving and self-effacing, he cannot lead the people. This was why Peter wrote to the Christians urging them to pass on the forgiveness they received to those who injure them. He said, “The merit, in the sight of God, is in bearing punishment patiently when you are punished after doing your duty. This, in fact, is what you were called to do, because Christ suffered for you and left an example for you to follow the way he took.”
Christ is the example that all leaders must follow because, leaders are often misunderstood, criticized, taken for granted, slandered and insulted, not when they do the wrong things but when doing what is right. This is the price of leadership. If leaders expect people to always appreciate them and support them, they will be greatly disappointed. Those leaders who seek their own interests and short-term gains will make policies not because they are true, good and just, but because they seek popularity and support. They are not concerned for the sheep and the future of humanity but for power and control. So good leaders must be ready to stand up to such false and wrong accusations for the good they do. Indeed, that was how the Lord served us. “He had not done anything wrong, and there had been no perjury in his mouth. He was insulted and did not retaliate with insults; when he was tortured he made no threats but he put his trust in the righteous judge.”
And why did He not retaliate against His enemies? It is because He loves us all as the Good Shepherd. He did not come just for the healthy and the good people, He came for the sick and the sinners. As St Peter said, “He was bearing our faults in his own body on the cross, so that we might die to our faults and live for holiness; through his wounds you have been healed. You had gone astray like sheep but now you have come back to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.” So, too, as true leaders after Christ, we are here not only to serve those who are good to us, those who are supportive of us, but even those who are against us for reasons of ignorance, pride or jealousy. Like Jesus, we hope that by our patient, forgiving and tolerant love, we will win them over one day to our love and the love of God. Our enemies also need enlightenment and salvation.
So, on this Good Shepherd Sunday, we pray for ourselves who exercise leadership in some ways and we pray for our sheep as well. We must pray for parents, teachers, corporate and political leaders, for our priests and seminarians. In a special way, we need to pray for more holy priestly and religious vocations, so that they can lead all of us in different vocations to serve with devotion and love. May our leaders serve the cause of truth, justice and love with compassion and selflessness. May Christian leaders manifest the compassion of Christ and His humility in service who came to give His life as a ransom for many, to serve and not be served.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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