Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday is the Fourth Sunday of Easter and it is also commonly known as the Good Shepherd Sunday or Vocation Sunday. On this Sunday we remember the Lord as the Good Shepherd, the One Who guides all of the faithful people of God, the sheep of the Lord’s flock to return to God our loving Father and Creator, gathering us all from being scattered all throughout the whole world, so that we are no longer lost to Him. On this Sunday we also keep in mind all those who are discerning their vocation in life, and while we often put a lot of focus and emphasis on those who are being called to the priesthood, this day is in fact also a reminder of our various vocations in life, be it as those called to priesthood or consecrated life, as well as those who are part of the laity, in our diverse callings in life.

In our first reading this Sunday, we heard from the Acts of the Apostles of the actions and works of St. Paul the Apostle and his companion in ministry, St. Barnabas, who was also an Apostle. Both of them went through the regions of Perga and Pisidia which were in Asia Minor, what is now part of modern day Turkey, where they ministered to the people of God, both amongst the Jews in the diaspora communities there, as well as among the Gentiles or the non-Jewish people. St. Paul in particular was well-known for his outreach and efforts to proclaim the Good News of God among the Gentiles, and was very adamant in the equality between the Jews and the Gentiles, and how there should be no distinction between the two groups of people as God loves everyone of His followers equally and and wonderfully.

But many among the Jewish community, even in the diaspora, particularly thosewho who belonged to the school of the Pharisees and their supporters, namely those who upheld a very strict and rigid observance of the Law of God, and who were often very elitist and exclusivist in their faith, considering that God’s salvation and grace were meant only for the people of Israel and their descendants, and all the other people were doomed to condemnation and destruction unless they would adopt completely and entirely the whole Jewish customs and practices, that essentially therefore turned them into a Jew. This is something that is very difficult for the Gentiles, consisting of the Romans, the Greeks, Egyptians and many other local people, whose own customs and practices were very different from the Jews, and many of the Jewish customs and practices such as circumcision were abhorrent and disgusting to the Gentiles.

That was why St. Paul and St. Barnabas reached out to the Gentiles, since some if not quite a few among the Jewish populations in those cities they visited were not very keen or welcoming on the words and teachings that they had been bringing with them. But as we heard, this incited jealousy among the Jewish people in the region because St. Paul and St. Barnabas proclaimed salvation for all the people, both Jews and Gentiles alike, which were not agreeable to those among the Jewish people who upheld the ideas I mentioned earlier. They stirred up trouble and unrest and led to St. Paul and St. Barnabas to be expelled from the region. Nonetheless, both Apostles had already succeeded in planting the seeds of faith among the people, and they continued on their works despite all those challenges and trials that they had to face in their journey.

Then, from our second reading this Sunday, we heard from the Book of Revelations of St. John the Apostle in which the heavenly vision of St. John was highlighted to us. In that vision, St. John saw the multitudes of people, millions upon millions of people who had been found worthy by the Lord because they had been persecuted, facing difficulties and hardships, trials and challenges, and yet remained faithful to the Lord regardless to the very end. All of those people had washed themselves in the Blood of the Lamb, either in sharing His death through their martyrdom or by patiently enduring those sufferings in all of their various forms. Through this vision, God wanted us all to know through St. John the Apostle that there is hope for all of us and regardless of the sufferings and challenges that we may encounter in our paths in life, we will eventually be triumphant with God and freed from all those troubles.

There had been many challenges and trials facing the Church from the very beginning of its existence. Persecutions and trials, betrayals and many other hardships had been facing the faithful people of God from the very beginning of the Church, and there were many episodes and moments throughout the history of the Church, in all of its two thousand years, that numerous people who have committed themselves to the Lord faced a lot of troubles and hardships because of their faith. Some of them faltered and gave up their faith, and yet there were others who remained firm in their faith. And even among those who have given up their faith, some of them eventually repented and returned to the faith, and were willing to be persecuted again for their faith and trust in God.

This passage is a reminder to all of us that as Christians we must always have faith in the Lord, and we should not be afraid of the trials and persecutions that we may encounter in our path and journey as Christians, in being faithful to the Lord. We must trust in the Lord and in His Providence, in all that He has assured and repeatedly reassured us again and again, in everything that we shall receive and enjoy in the end after our earthly struggles and hardships have come to an end. Whatever sufferings and trials that we may be facing now in this world are not permanent, and the Lord Himself is always faithful to His Covenant and to the great and ever generous love that He has for each and every one of us. We should put our trust fully in His love and do our very best to commit ourselves to Him wholeheartedly at all times.

Lastly, from our Gospel passage taken from the Gospel according to St. John the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard the short account of the Lord’s words to His disciples telling them that He is as the Good Shepherd of the Lord’s flock, He knows His sheep well and conversely, His sheep also knows Him. This is a reminder for all of us again of God’s great love and commitment to us, in His ever enduring and present love for us, in His patient guidance and companionship with us as our loving and most dedicated Shepherd. He has come into our midst to find us all, to gather us all from being scattered all throughout this darkened world so that we may once again be reunited with God, and become members of this same flock, this same Church of God, the one united Body of Christ, which He has established in this world.

And He has shown His great love for us through His actions and most selfless love, by accepting on our behalf the punishments due for our sins and wickedness. He took upon Himself the blame and the punishment due for our sins, which He bore upon the Cross that He took on His shoulders. That is what the Good Shepherd has willingly done for His sheep, as He Himself said, that ‘The Good Shepherd lays down His life for His sheep.’ Essentially this means that a true and good shepherd will always care for his sheep no matter what, and will even put his life on the line for the ones who are truly precious to him. That is indeed the essence of true and genuine Christian love, love that is truly selfless and beautiful, and which all of us are called to follow in our own lives and examples. As Christians we should embody the selfless love of Christ, our Good Shepherd.

It means that we should help one another in  journeying towards the Lord and His salvation, and we share the responsibility of the Good Shepherd in being good role models and inspirations for each other in our respective lives. We should remind one another that every actions and words, deeds and interactions which we make in our lives are all very important, in ensuring that our every efforts, good works and endeavours are always focused on the Lord, and that we will continue to do our best to proclaim Him to everyone we encounter in life, in whatever circumstances and opportunities. And as today we also pray for our priests and all those who are discerning their vocations in life, may all of us be truly discerning in what we are planning to do in our lives, and pray that the Lord will guide us in making careful and well-discerned choice in our lives. May God bless us always. Amen.