Fourth Sunday of Easter, Year A
Acts 2:14a, 36–41
Psalm 23:1–3a, 3b–4, 5, 6
1 Peter 2:20b–25
John 10:1–10
The Fourth Sunday of Easter is known as Good Shepherd Sunday. We are invited to acknowledge Jesus as our Shepherd. John’s Gospel presents the shepherd as the gate through whom the sheep have to pass.
This image comes from the custom of having stone walls around a sheepfold that have open passageways that the shepherd blocks until it is safe for the sheep to go out. Many different flocks could be kept in such areas, with each shepherd responsible for allowing his own sheep to depart.
Jesus calls Himself the gate and describes the way His sheep acknowledge Him, hear His voice and follow where He leads. The relationship shared between shepherd and sheep is the guarantee of safety and care for the needs of the sheep. “The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.”
The relationship between Jesus and His sheep has one purpose, expressed by Jesus Himself: “I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.” This relationship calls for a personal response from every member of the flock.
The Acts of the Apostles shows us how this response was made by the first hearers of the Apostolic proclamation. They are cut to the quick by Peter’s historical account of what happened to Jesus, and they ask, “What are we to do, my brothers?”
Peter explains how each believer is called to respond: “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is made to you and to your children and to all those far off, whomever the Lord our God will call.”
As the Church observes Good Shepherd Sunday, we pray for those who are called to respond to serve as shepherds. The fact that fewer are answering this call in the present day does not mean that the call does not go out. We ought to ask the question that Peter’s hearers asked: “What are we to do?”
The Scriptures proclaimed throughout the Easter season show us the practical ways of responding to the invitation to faith. We must acknowledge the word and our own failure to respond. We must listen for the voice of the Shepherd and choose to follow where He leads.
All that we need to have abundant life comes to us from the Shepherd. We must choose to believe and live in the relationship that is offered to us: “The Lord is my shepherd.”
Children who experience the formation of Catechesis of the Good Shepherd come to beautiful insights about the Shepherd. One child who was reflecting on the image of the Good Shepherd came to a sudden insight that gave her and her catechists endless delight: “Jesus is the Shepherd! The Good Shepherd is Jesus!” She had discovered the mystery of her relationship to Jesus.
When we reflect on the love of the Shepherd for us and on the guidance and food for the journey that He gives, we become new ourselves. May we believe in the Shepherd, and may we listen to His voice. May others see our delight and join us in the sheepfold.
On this World Day of Prayer for Vocations, look around your family and your parish. Are there some who might need your encouragement and guidance to discover the Shepherd for themselves? What are you doing to ensure that the Shepherd has followers?