20240421 THE JOY OF ANNOUNCING THE NAME OF JESUS
21 April 2024, Sunday, 4th Week of Eastertide (Vocation Sunday)
First reading | Acts 4:8-12 © |
The name of Jesus Christ is the only name in which we can be saved
Filled with the Holy Spirit, Peter said: ‘Rulers of the people, and elders! If you are questioning us today about an act of kindness to a cripple, and asking us how he was healed, then I am glad to tell you all, and would indeed be glad to tell the whole people of Israel, that it was by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, the one you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by this name and by no other that this man is able to stand up perfectly healthy, here in your presence, today. This is the stone rejected by you the builders, but which has proved to be the keystone. For of all the names in the world given to men, this is the only one by which we can be saved.’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 117(118):1,8-9,21-23,26,28-29 |
Second reading | 1 John 3:1-2 © |
We shall be like God because we shall see him as he really is
Think of the love that the Father has lavished on us,
by letting us be called God’s children;
and that is what we are.
Because the world refused to acknowledge him,
therefore it does not acknowledge us.
My dear people, we are already the children of God
but what we are to be in the future has not yet been revealed;
all we know is, that when it is revealed
we shall be like him
because we shall see him as he really is.
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 10:11-18 © |
The good shepherd is one who lays down his life for his sheep
Jesus said:
‘I am the good shepherd:
the good shepherd is one who lays down his life for his sheep.
The hired man, since he is not the shepherd
and the sheep do not belong to him,
abandons the sheep and runs away
as soon as he sees a wolf coming,
and then the wolf attacks and scatters the sheep;
this is because he is only a hired man
and has no concern for the sheep.
‘I am the good shepherd;
I know my own
and my own know me,
just as the Father knows me
and I know the Father;
and I lay down my life for my sheep.
And there are other sheep I have
that are not of this fold,
and these I have to lead as well.
They too will listen to my voice,
and there will be only one flock,
and one shepherd.
‘The Father loves me,
because I lay down my life
in order to take it up again.
No one takes it from me;
I lay it down of my own free will,
and as it is in my power to lay it down,
so it is in my power to take it up again;
and this is the command I have been given by my Father.’
THE JOY OF ANNOUNCING THE NAME OF JESUS
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ACTS 4:8-12; PS 118; 1 JOHN 3:1-2; JOHN 10:11-18]
Today, we celebrate Good Shepherd Sunday. It is a day in which we remember with joy that God is our shepherd in life. Jesus is the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for His sheep. Unlike the hired worker who “is not the shepherd and the sheep do not belong to him, abandons the sheep and runs away as soon as he sees a wolf coming, because he is only a hired man and has no concern for the sheep”, Jesus is our true shepherd because He stays with His flock until the end. Jesus came so that we might have life to the fullest. He came to show us the Way to the fullness of life. He is the Keystone, the cornerstone of our faith, the way to encounter the love of God.
Most importantly, as the Good Shepherd, He is identified with His sheep. There can be no shepherd without sheep and there is no sheep without a shepherd. He knows our struggles, our fears and our anxieties, and what it means to be tempted, to suffer injustice and betrayal. “‘I am the good shepherd; I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for my sheep.” Jesus as the Good Shepherd was not forced to die for us. Rather, He gave up His life freely for us all. He said, “The Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from me; I lay it down of my own free will, and as it is in my power to lay it down, so it is in my power to take it up again; and this is the command I have been given by my Father.”
However, it is not enough to proclaim that Jesus is our Good Shepherd who laid down His life for His sheep. We do not simply celebrate His death for His Sheep but we celebrate His resurrection for us as well. For Jesus, our Good Shepherd, not only died for His sheep but was raised from the dead to give hope to His sheep as well. It is because of His resurrection that we are certain that Jesus is the true shepherd of us all. It is His resurrection that gives us a certain hope.
This explains the great joy of Peter in announcing the name of Jesus, of being ministers of healing and His channels of mercy. He knew that the healing of the crippled man was due to the power of the Risen Lord. “Filled with the Holy Spirit, Peter said: If you are questioning us today about an act of kindness to a cripple, and asking us how he was healed, then I am glad to tell you all, and would indeed be glad to tell the whole people of Israel, that it was by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, the one you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by this name and by no other that this man is able to stand up perfectly healthy, here in your presence, today.” Twice, Peter mentioned he was glad to have had the opportunity to testify to the power of the Risen Lord. He knew that it was not in his power to heal the crippled man. It was clearly through the apostles’ prayers to the Risen Lord. Hence, his conclusion that “This is the stone rejected by you the builders, but which has proved to be the keystone. For of all the names in the world given to men, this is the only one by which we can be saved.” That God restored this man rejected by them shows the mercy of God and His power over evil, sin and ignorance. He became the keystone to understand the mercy and love of God for humanity.
With Him as our Saviour, we know that we are not just the sheep of God but we are His children. St John wrote at the prologue of his gospel, “He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God.” (Jn 1:11-13)
Indeed, only those who acknowledge Jesus as the Risen Lord, the Son of God can share in His sonship. This is why St John also wrote, “Think of the love that the Father has lavished on us, by letting us be called God’s children; and that is what we are.” Through Christ, we have gained our sonship. Through Christ, we share in His sonship because we are heirs with Him. (cf Rom 8:15-17)
Today, we are called to be witnesses to Jesus our Good Shepherd, the Risen Lord. We are called to announce the name of Jesus according to our vocation in life. It does not matter whether we are priests, religious, married people, singles, professionals, workers, students or retirees. All of us are called to be witnesses of our Lord through the life we live, the words we say and the work we do. But how many of us take our vocation seriously? How many of us are conscious that we are called to announce Christ to the world through our vocation, to make Him known explicitly through our words, sharing, or implicitly through our exemplary life lived in union with Christ? The truth is that many of us lack consciousness of the call of God because we do not listen. Instead of living our vocation, we choose a career.
Vocation is different from a career. Vocation is a call from God that one responds to. When it is a vocation, we give our heart and soul to it regardless of the sacrifices and suffering we have to bear. But we carry all these for the love of Jesus and His sheep. In the case of Peter and the apostles, in spite of threats of imprisonment and punishment, they were not fearful to proclaim the name of Jesus. Most of us fight shy not just in sharing about Jesus with others but even hide our identity as Catholics. A career is different. A career is your choice and your preference. It is not God who is calling you but you call yourself. You do what you like to do, and the day you tire of it, you resign.
This is also the attitude of many of our ministry members when it comes to their church involvements. When they are not happy with the organization, or with the leaders, or the priests, they resign; as if they are working for the organization or the priests, when in fact they are working for God! If God calls you, you cannot say “I will not do it”. Of course, if you call yourself, then it is your free will to say I no longer want to do it. This is why when Catholics ask me what ministry they should join, I advise them to pray and discern where God is calling them to serve. He has given you some unique charisms. God will tell you to use your charisms for a certain need wherever you are. You should be asking God and discerning where you are most needed and where God wants you, not what you like to do. If you only do what you like, you are serving yourself, not God nor His people!
Finally, a special word to our young people. In no time, you will graduate with a degree. You will be leaders in the world and in society. You must already begin to ask yourself, what is the Lord calling you to do? What is your vocation in life? Parents, teachers and guardians have the task of helping them to find their vocation in life so that they can commit themselves wholeheartedly to what they do. Then they will be truly happy in life. But in the discernment of your vocation you should also not dismiss the possibility that God is calling you to the priestly or religious life. We must be receptive to the call of God to serve Him in anyway. Otherwise, you will miss out the great gift of living life to the fullest.
Indeed, as we celebrate Good Shepherd Sunday, we are called to mediate the effects of the Risen Lord in our lives. We see the work of the Risen Lord in the radical conversion of people’s lives – those who had no faith in God, living a life of selfishness and worldly pursuits, who after having found Him through a conversion experience, now live in joy and freedom. We experience the unselfish love of priests, religious, even our fellow Catholics who have given up their comfort and security to serve others humbly and without conditions. We experience the effects of the resurrection when we receive God’s grace to forgive those who have hurt us deeply either because of sexual abuse or the harm they have done to us and our reputation. We experience the power of the resurrection when, through faith in God’s mercy, a child is born normal against all medical advice. In many instances, just receiving help, consolation, encouragement and understanding from our friends and loved ones is enough for us to know through them that God is our Good Shepherd. Let us therefore cling to Jesus our Good Shepherd, and also be a good shepherd to all those whom we meet and encounter each day.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved. T
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