Homily For The 4th Sunday Of Easter /Good Shepherd Sunday, April 21, 2024

A Good Shepherd operates from a paradigm wherein their life’s purpose transcends personal gratification, extending instead towards the welfare and advancement of those under their care. This profound understanding underscores the essence of altruism and sacrificial service, hallmark qualities intrinsic to the character of a true shepherd.

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My Dearest Friends In Christ,

I welcome you to yet another Sunday of the Lord’s resurrection, a day that holds special significance in highlighting the urgency and the need for good shepherds of God’s flock and prayers for vocations. We gather here to remind each other of our responsibilities as shepherds of God’s people, responsibilities that are increasingly diminished in today’s egoistic and materialistic society. “In the quest to satisfy his desires, ambitions, and needs, the modern man tends to think more of himself than those around him.” Characteristically, good shepherding implies an altruistic disposition, contrasting with the self-centered tendencies of our times. Jesus, the risen Lord, exemplified such an altruistic disposition by offering himself to die for his flock. Jesus Is The Good Shepherd. We Are Called To Imitate His Example.

Shepherd in the Old and New Testament Testament

In the Old Testament, the image of the Shepherd is often applied to God as well as to the leaders of the people. The book of Exodus several times calls Yahweh a shepherd. Likewise, the prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel compare Yahweh’s care and protection of His people to that of a shepherd. “He is like a shepherd feeding his flock, gathering lambs in his arms, holding them against His breast and leading the mother ewes to their rest.” (Isaiah 40:11). Ezekiel represents God as a loving Shepherd Who searches diligently for his lost sheep. In the New Testament, as we heard in today’s Gospel, Jesus calls himself the Good Shepherd and tells us that He knows His sheep, and they hear His voice. He gives them eternal life, protects them, and dies for them. Let us identify with those entrusted to us in every experience of their lives. The closer we come to them, the more they listen and understand us.

Hired Labourers and Good Shepards

Are you a hired laborer (bad shepherd) or a good shepherd? In the Old Testament, God lamented on bad shepherds, stating, “Doom for the shepherds who allow the flock of my pasture to be destroyed and scattered” (Jeremiah 23:1). Additionally, “Trouble for the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Shepherds ought to feed their flock” (Ezekiel 34:2). This distinction between good shepherds and “bad workers” needs to be made to help us reflect deeply on our various vocations. Anyone who has someone or some people entrusted to his care, whether through employment, volunteer work, or vocation, is called to be a shepherd. However, experience has shown that not everyone fulfills their duties with the compassion, disposition, patience, tolerance, availability, and meekness of a good shepherd. Many preys on, instead of praying for, those entrusted to their care. For many of us, our motives are far from “Caring for,” but rather the wages that come with it. These uncaring individuals work as hired laborers who lack sympathy or affection for those they serve. They lack the commitment to their duties, and when they are committed, it is often due to attractive wages.

In the sphere of public service today, we have leaders who care more about themselves and their families than those they lead. Isn’t this the cause of bad governance in the world today? In the private sphere, we live in a world where surveillance cameras and technological equipment are deployed to monitor and check excesses from those working in various institutions. I am so much worried. Do you need to be monitored before you can care for those entrusted to your care? What happens if you are not monitored? Let’s be more human because God rewards every act of goodness shown to others.

Called To Heal Our Wounded World

The first reading highlights the testimony of Peter, who made it clear to the Jewish leaders that there is no salvation except through Christ, whom they rejected. And that it is through him that the sick were healed. Like Jesus, we are called to heal a wounded world. Many are weak and wounded; let’s be more compassionate and patient in dealing with people around us.

John, in today’s second reading, reminds his people to remember their privileges. First, it is their privilege to be called the children of God. John clarifies that we are not merely called the children of God; we are God’s children in actuality. It is by grace through Baptism that we become God’s children. The more we know and love the God we believe in, the more we will strive to act and live as God’s children. In other words, we become like the God we believe in. As the culmination of all our privileges as children of God, when Christ appears, we shall see him “as He is,” and we shall be like him. As God’s children, we imitate God our Father in being true shepherds of His flock.

You Are Called To Serve As A Good Shephard

In whatever profession you find yourself in, be a good shepherd. Let us also be good sheep in our parish communities; let us be sheep who listen to the voice of their shepherd and jointly participate in building up the church of God. Let us pray always for more vocations to the Diaconate, Priesthood, and Religious life so that God will in every generation find worthy pastors and ministers of His Church . Let’s offer those we are called to serve, an opportunity to grow and succeed. God gives us life through the sacraments. Let our words and actions give people hope and encouragement. It is our duty to protect them and not to expose them to danger and harm; physical or spiritual. We need to be vigilant in looking after them. We must make sacrifices for those we are called to care for. It is dying to self to offer life to those of them in need. It is not about us but about them. Jesus laid down his life for us; we too must not spare anything in offering the best of ourselves to those we serve. Remember, there are those who are outside the boundaries of your jurisdiction. Sheep who do not belong to the fold. They too must be loved and cared for. No discrimination of any sort. We are all one in Christ

May we eschew every form of selfish ambition in religious and civil service. Every opportunity to trade, work, lead, teach, etc. is a call to serve others. There is joy and fulfillment in our work when we truly offer ourselves in sincere service to others as good shepherds. May God strengthen you as you care for others, and may the good Shepherd reward you unceasingly.