20220509 DISCERNING THE VOICE OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD
09 May, 2022, Monday, 4th Week of Easter
First reading | Acts 11:1-18 © |
God can grant even the pagans the repentance that leads to life
The apostles and the brothers in Judaea heard that the pagans too had accepted the word of God, and when Peter came up to Jerusalem the Jews criticised him and said, ‘So you have been visiting the uncircumcised and eating with them, have you?’ Peter in reply gave them the details point by point: ‘One day, when I was in the town of Jaffa,’ he began ‘I fell into a trance as I was praying and had a vision of something like a big sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners. This sheet reached the ground quite close to me. I watched it intently and saw all sorts of animals and wild beasts – everything possible that could walk, crawl or fly. Then I heard a voice that said to me, “Now, Peter; kill and eat!” But I answered: Certainly not, Lord; nothing profane or unclean has ever crossed my lips. And a second time the voice spoke from heaven, “What God has made clean, you have no right to call profane.” This was repeated three times, before the whole of it was drawn up to heaven again.
‘Just at that moment, three men stopped outside the house where we were staying; they had been sent from Caesarea to fetch me, and the Spirit told me to have no hesitation about going back with them. The six brothers here came with me as well, and we entered the man’s house. He told us he had seen an angel standing in his house who said, “Send to Jaffa and fetch Simon known as Peter; he has a message for you that will save you and your entire household.”
‘I had scarcely begun to speak when the Holy Spirit came down on them in the same way as it came on us at the beginning, and I remembered that the Lord had said, “John baptised with water, but you will be baptised with the Holy Spirit.” I realised then that God was giving them the identical thing he gave to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ; and who was I to stand in God’s way?’
This account satisfied them, and they gave glory to God. ‘God’ they said ‘can evidently grant even the pagans the repentance that leads to life.’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 41(42):2-3,42:3-4 © |
My soul is thirsting for God, the God of my life.
or
Alleluia!
Like the deer that yearns
for running streams,
so my soul is yearning
for you, my God.
My soul is thirsting for God, the God of my life.
or
Alleluia!
My soul is thirsting for God,
the God of my life;
when can I enter and see
the face of God?
My soul is thirsting for God, the God of my life.
or
Alleluia!
O send forth your light and your truth;
let these be my guide.
Let them bring me to your holy mountain,
to the place where you dwell.
My soul is thirsting for God, the God of my life.
or
Alleluia!
And I will come to the altar of God,
the God of my joy.
My redeemer, I will thank you on the harp,
O God, my God.
My soul is thirsting for God, the God of my life.
or
Alleluia!
Gospel Acclamation | Jn10:14 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the good shepherd, says the Lord;
I know my own sheep and my own know me.
Alleluia!
Gospel | John 10:1-10 © |
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.’
DISCERNING THE VOICE OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ACTS 11:1-18; PS 42:2-3, 42:3-4; JN 10:1-10]
How do we discern the voice of the Good Shepherd in this modern world of ours? We are living in a world where people are more educated. Furthermore, in a world of digital technology and mass communication, there is free exchange of information. and often information overload. For the young person who is exposed to such a vast and extensive range of views and ideas, how is he to know what to choose or whom to believe?
Jesus makes it clear that He is the Gate to eternal life. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. He 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.” Again, He said, “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.” If we want to find direction in life today, we do not seek further than our Lord Jesus Christ because He is the Risen Lord, the Saviour of the world. We must enter the gate, that is, Jesus Christ, so that we can walk in truth and in love. Consequently, everything we do or say, we need to consult and seek the Lord’s counsel in our decision-making.
But the irony is that many of us only pay lip service to Christ as the Gate to the fullness of life. We claim to be His sheep but we do not listen to His voice on matters relating to morals and doctrines. Instead, we listen to the voice of strangers; those who do not know Christ. Instead of taking direction from the gospel and from the authoritative teachers appointed by Christ, we prefer to seek advice from the internet and the mass media. In the final analysis, we listen to our own voice, not to the voice of the Good Shepherd. As a result, we have allowed brigands and thieves to steal our happiness and joy because we welcome them into our lives. Jesus tells us that a good sheep knows the voice of the shepherd and would not respond to any other voices other than that of the Lord. Have you ever tried to speak to a child? When the child does not know you and you call him or her, he or she will either ignore you, run away to his or her mommy or cry. They are smart enough not to follow the voice of strangers, but we Catholics do that. They believe more in the opinions of the world of science, technology, economics and politics than the Word of God.
However, in saying that Jesus is the Gate to the sheepfold, the place of refuge, rest and security, there is always the tension of applying what Jesus taught to the contemporary situation. Indeed, the gospel of Christ which is recorded in the bible gives us the principles of managing our lives but they do not provide detail directions in every situation. The bible is not a panacea to all problems. It requires understanding in applying the teachings of Christ. A literal interpretation of the Word of God can be detrimental if not destructive to our spiritual life. We can end up being a fundamentalist and cause division not just in Church but in society. The gospel needs to be reinterpreted afresh all the time; otherwise it becomes fossilized and irrelevant. In that sense we need to look to the bible to help us interpret the changing times of society so that we can know the will of God for our times.
This was the challenge of the early Church in the first reading. On one hand, there was a desire to be faithful to the tradition of the Jews. In the initial development of Christianity, the first Christians were Jews. But as Christianity spread out to the non-Jews, the Gentiles, the Church had to decide whether one who is a Christian must also be a Jew. Must a Jew give up his Jewish faith and tradition to be a Christian? Being so steeped in the traditions and customs of Judaism, it was difficult for them to accommodate the customs of the Gentiles for fear of breaching their rules. One of those prohibitions was to come into close contact with the Gentiles, eating with them or entering their house, as such actions would make them unclean.
This is also true for the Church today with regard to changes in traditions and in pastoral practices. On one hand, we have Catholics who want to be faithful to the Catholic Traditions before Vatican II. For them, Vatican II was a big mistake. Then there are those who want to go beyond Vatican II, thinking that not only have we failed to implement the decrees of Vatican II but we should be even more adventurous and proactive in adapting to changing times, going beyond what Vatican II taught. So how do we handle the challenging situation we are in? We are called to take a leaf from the early Church.
We must take cognizance that the tension between the Jewish Christians and the Gentile Christians was so explosive that it could have caused the Church to be fragmented and arrested the future growth of Christianity. If it were not properly managed, Christianity would have been reduced to another form of Judaism. Thus, we can appreciate why St Luke gave such prominence to the story of the conversion of Cornelius. Yet tension is not necessarily bad so long as it is not a destructive tension. We should channel and transform all tensions into creative tensions because it brings new life and a new perspective. Only in creative tension can we find new solutions and hear the voice of the Lord clearer as we see things in a broader perspective.
From this event, we come to realize that it is important that the Church continues to reflect and discern how to apply the gospel to the challenges of modern and contemporary times. Our culture has changed radically because of developments in mass media, technology, knowledge and the way of life. The Church needs to stay relevant to society and not withdraw from the world. If we do, the world will continue without us. As Church we must ensure that we have the right shepherds to lead both the Church and the country. We need to have good leaders in every area of life, politics, economic, and religion.
How, then, can we ensure that the tensions are truly creative and that we are responding to the Holy Spirit in our times?
Firstly, Christians, especially those who are leaders, must enter the Gate to find life ourselves. If we do not enter the Gate, then the sheep will not recognize that we are the voice of God. So before we can lead, we must first enter the Gate. Jesus said, “The gatekeeper lets him in, the sheep hear his voice, one by one he calls his own sheep and leads them out. They never follow a stranger but run away from him: they do not recognise the voice of strangers.” As leaders and shepherds of our flock, whether at home, at work, in church or community, we need to hear the voice of the Good Shepherd before we can lead others. Leaders must show the way, walk the way, and walk ahead of those under their care if they are to truly lead them to the greener pastures of life. A leader must not allow himself to be led by the sheep.
Secondly, for a radical change in traditions or in the way we do things or look at new situations, we need also a radical new experience of God to effect that change in paradigm. It is significant that in the Cornelius episode, at the end of the day, the decision to accept the Gentiles Christians was not based on any logical argument but the fact of what happened, namely, the vision of St Peter was confirmed to be a prelude for him to enter the house of Cornelius so that he could see for himself that the Lord also wanted to give the same gift of the Holy Spirit to the Gentiles as well. St Peter said, “I realized then that God was giving them the identical thing he gave to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ; and who was I to stand in God’s way?” By so doing, the Lord assured St Peter that the Gentiles could no longer be considered profane as they are all loved by God because He pours the same Holy Spirit into them. Hence, “This account satisfied them, and they gave glory to God, ‘God’ they said, ‘can evidently grant even the pagans the repentance that leads to life.'”
In the final analysis, how do we know that we have discerned correctly? Jesus said, “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.” We need to ask ourselves, are we protecting traditions for traditions’ sake, or are we more interested in giving the fullness of life to the people under our care? Of course, the happiness we offer cannot be temporary or a pseudo-happiness but lasting joy. Can we provide true security and refuge to those who seek God? So it is not enough to preserve traditions but lose its meaning and relevance. We must reinvent traditions, make them relevant and meaningful so that these traditions speak to our sheep and help them to find focus and direction in life. Most of all, it must satisfy their thirst for God, for the hunger and emptiness in their hearts. This is the prayer of the psalmist for us all, “Like the deer that yearns for running streams, so my soul is yearning for you, my God. My soul is thirsting for God, the God of my life; when can I enter and see the face of God? O send forth your light and your truth; let these be my guide. Let them bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell.”
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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