Acts 4, 8-12; 1John
3,1-2; John 10,11-18
We are
celebrating the Sunday of Good Shepherd and of the vocations. This Sunday is
invitation to thank to God for the great gift of the vocation and to ask him to
continue blessing his church with the increasing of the vocations. This
proposal was initiative of the pope Paul VI, in 1964, motivating all Church to
the commitment with the vocational sake. The prayer for the vocations is also obedience
to the appeals of Jesus of “praying to the owner of the harvest to send out
workers to gather in his harvest, because the harvest is large, but there are
few workers (cf. Mt 10, 37-38). The vocation is a gift, it is a calling of God;
it is a necessity of the church and baptismal identity. The vocational
cultivation start in the family and the one who calls expects always a generous
answer from those who are called. Let us reflect about this reality through
richness of the readings of this liturgy in order to live with enthusiasm our
vocation.
In the First
reading the apostles are caught and questioned about the good done to a
paralysed person. Their answer before the Jewish authority confirms the
strength of the Holy Spirit acting in their lives. For them, each moment was always
a new opportunity of witnessing to the new life offered by Jesus to all who
believe in him. The mission of Jesus was directed to all people. He is the
fullness of the revelation of God and only through him the people can find
salvation. According to St John, though the mission of Jesus the people became
children of God and they are called to establish deep relationship with him
just like the Son establishes with the Father. The reason of this identity of
children is his love for the humanity. Only the love creates familiarity and intimacy.
Only through the love it is possible to live as children of God and to spend
the life for the sake of Jesus and his message of salvation. Only the person
who loves is able to overcome all rivalry, competition, tribalism and
discrimination, spending all his/her energies with the essential.
In the gospel
of John we have the revelation of Jesus as Good Shepherd. He is the Good Shepherd
because loves his sheep and is willing to lay down for their sake. He takes
after of them and spends all his energies for their lives. The relationship of
intimacy between the Son and the Father is the referential for the relationship
between Jesus and his sheep. The freedom of the Son is expression of the
intensity of love received from the Father. In the gratuity and generosity of
his gesture of surrender is expressed all his love for the sake of his sheep. Being
sheep of the flock of the Good Shepherd Jesus is to be willing to listen to his
voice and to follow his instructions because he desires only the good of the
flock. His intention reaches also those who don’t know him, but one day will
listen to his voice and will walk in unity with him. The lack of commitment of
those who aren’t shepherd causes dispersion of the flock. The flock needs good
shepherds.
In Jesus,
good shepherd, God manifests all his care for his people in passionate way,
giving right direction for their lives. The resistance to the voice of Jesus is
resistance in doing God’s will and to live the familiarity with him. The correct answer to his calling in the
actual reality is the good disposition to live his Words, very attentive to his
inspirations in order to act with wisdom in the reality around us. From God we
learn to take after of the vocations, especially among the youth.
The church
has necessity of good vocations in order to continue with fidelity the mission
received from Jesus, the Good Shepherd. We are called to act like the first
disciples, who assumed the vocation and mission entrusted to them with joy and
enthusiasm. The new identity lived as disciples of Jesus remained us about the
importance of the vocation received in our baptism through which we became
priests, prophets and shepherds. The true vocational living must be imitation
of the gestures and feelings of the Good Shepherd in his care for the sheep,
assuming with responsibility the task of leadership for the good of people of
God and flock of Jesus.
Fr Ndega
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