Easter 4

Easter 4
May 7, 2006

by Jude Siciliano, OP

Acts 4: 8-12
Psalm 118
I John 3: 1-2
John 10: 11-18

Dear Preachers: In the 34th chapter of Ezekiel God denounced the bad shepherds of Israel and promised to come to look after the flock and bring the people the justice they were not getting from their own leaders. There was a model shepherd in Israel's past, David, who did God's will, defended and ministered to the people. But subsequent "shepherds" were not up to David's stature, they were dismal failures and did not look after the sheep; in fact, they led them astray. God would have to personally take things in hand if the people were to be guided and cared for properly. Otherwise, they would go astray and lose their memory of the God who had been so gracious to them. The context for today's gospel passage reflects this background-- the failure of Israel's shepherds to faithfully lead God's people.

Previously, in chapter 9, Jesus cured the man born blind. In the narrative that follows the cure, John details the Pharisees' hostility to Jesus and the man he cured. They are not the good shepherds described by Jesus, willing to "lay down" their lives for their sheep. He likens them to paid hirelings, in it for the pay, with no attachment or concern for the sheep they shepherd.

When reading a gospel passage like today's, I ask myself: Why would the early church save this passage? Was it meant to be a remembrance of Jesus'superiority over some of Israel's corrupt religious leaders? Yes. But the passage was not just a memory that looked back on Jesus' life with his disciples. It must have spoken to the early church's contemporary situation. It would have challenged the leaders, "pastors," who had failed their nascent communities and who had placed themselves above their people or preached a gospel they did not adhere to themselves. During our times, when some church leaders and local shepherds have dismally failed their flock, it is comforting to hear Jesus' reminder that he would be a faithful shepherd and not abandon us the way the "hired hands" had, those in it for their own profit or power.

One senses too that this passage spoke to another phenomenon in the early church---the defection from the community of some of its members--- "other sheep." Divisions and splits among Christians have been with us since the very beginning of the church. Jesus expresses a desire that we be "one flock" with him as our "one shepherd." We lament the antagonisms and rivalries among different Christian denominations that we read and hear about in the news and experience in our local communities. It is possible though, despite our differences, that Christ, our Shepherd, does much to unify Christians: in our concern for the needy and sick; our opposition to war and the death penalty; our communal prayer on special occasions; our programs for children and abused women; our food pantries; ecumenical dialogues; our collaboration on environmental projects and our joint lobbying of Congress and the United Nations for those in poor countries and in places where there is civil strife.

But the scattered and divided sheep are not just "out there," for rancor exists in our own worshiping communities. Sometimes divisions exist because the "old timers" resent the "new comers"; one racial or ethnic group stands aloof from another; the established community treats a minority group as second class members of the parish; the big contributors look on the poorer members as "not pulling their own weight"; one group resents the liturgical preferences of another, etc. We know from our experience that being in the same building at prayer does not necessarily mean we are worshiping together, that we are one flock with one shepherd.

No, today's gospel passage isn't a nostalgic look-back to Jesus' frustration with some hostile Pharisees' failure to lead the flock entrusted to their care and their failure to recognize him as the shepherd sent by God. The simple parable of the Good Shepherd encourages us today. God has not left us on our own to flounder and wander, even when our own shepherds fail us. It also challenges individuals and communities to find ways to heal the divisions that continue to separate the flock and that make us a sign of division, instead of unity, in the world.

Jesus is not a "Good Shepherd" in name only; he is willing to give his life for his sheep. But not because he has no choice. "I have power...," he says and so his sacrifice for his flock is a freely offered gift of himself. His ties to his flock are as strong, he says, as are those with his Father. "...I know mine and mine know me, just ast the Father knows me and I know the Father." Even his death will not separate him from his sheep. He keeps providing us with all we need for our mission to live his life in the world.

How well does God know us? If we look to Christ, we would say, "extremely well," because in Christ, God became one of us. God does not look on from a distance; instead, God has walked our paths, seen and heard the world through the eyes and ears of one like us. God knows what it is like to face our fears and be shaken by what terrifies us--all the "wolves" that "...catch and scatter" us in daily life. In Christ, God says, "I know mine and mine know me." When we pray the triple, "Lamb of God" before receiving communion today, we can have confidence in the One who knows us intimately and has laid down his life for us, "...I know mine and mine know me."

How can we not be influenced by this loving , nurturing and caring Shepherd? How can we not take his concern for us and put it into practice? As we look to the little ones around us, at the scattered of the world, aren't we called to serve them and give our lives for them as Jesus has done for us? How many times in our daily lives are we called upon to stand with and be a faithful presence to someone in need? Even when we can't resolve a situation or "solve" a problem, we can be like the Shepherd who does not desert his flock when the going gets difficult. Such accompaniment may require being faithful to those who are dying, undergoing serious medical procedures or suffering trauma. Our being with them, even when we can do nothing to relieve their distress, may reflect for them the abiding presence of the Good Shepherd, who does not abandon his sheep in their hour of need. Our voice of support and encouragement for them will echo that of the Good Shepherd himself; they will recognize his voice in ours and know he had not left them in dangerous times.

I wonder what the Good Shepherd is doing in our church these days as we suffer a shortage of vocations, and a dwindling number of pastors for the flock? How has the Shepherd, who knows his flock, responded to all the prayers we have been saying for vocations? Well, go to any parish community and see the large number of lay and religious, paid and volunteer workers, who teach, visit the sick, balance the books, proclaim the scriptures, take communion to the sick, etc. Our Shepherd has seen our need and responded by sending a bountiful number of shepherds.

Yes, but what about all those prayers for more priests? The number of vocations to priestly ministry is woefully inadequate to our expanding needs. In dioceses across the country there is a growing number of "priest-less parishes." Prayer doesn't seem to have helped the dire situation; the Good Shepherd doesn't seem to be doing anything in this crucial area for his flock. Maybe we are not praying hard enough. Or, maybe he isn't the one who is not responding. Maybe we need to make changes in our church and include for ordination people from among the many other pastors in the church---those who are currently ministering to us in their non-ordained roles. Maybe we would also get amble responses, and have more than enough pastors if ordination were possible for more than just celibate men.

QUOTABLE

"Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, to all the people you can, as long as you can. In all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can." - John Wesley's Rule

JUSTICE NOTES

(These weekly quotes may be helpful in your preaching or may also be added to your weekly parish bulletin as a way of informing your faith community on some social issues.)
A Moral Document
The federal budget is more than just a long, complicated list of numbers. It is a moral document, showing in concrete financial terms the value that our country puts on the specific needs and wants of our people. In addition to carrying real consequences for individuals, the budget shapes the future of our economy and society. Bread for the World's interest in the U.S. budget centers on its impact on hungry and poor people at home and around the world.
In February, the Bush administration submitted its budget request for the next fiscal year (FY 2007).... The administration's $2.77 trillion budget request calls for large increases in military and homeland security spending, a modest increase for international affairs, more tax cuts primarily for wealthy people, and deep cuts in domestic spending, including anti-hunger and poverty programs. Congress will probably not want, in an election year, to make the deep cuts to domestic programs, including food stamps, that President Bush proposed. But neither does it seem disposed to support even the modest increases for international affairs, including money for poverty-focused development assistance, that the president also proposed.
Bread for the World is concerned that next year's budget will make life harder for hungry and poor people in this country and around the world. Even with the U.S. economy doing well, the 45 percent rise in regular military spending over the past 5 years, the additional military spending for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the loss of revenue from the string of large tax increases for wealthy people have placed big strains on the federal budget.
----from the "Bread for the World" webpage

Buddhist Prayer for Peace: May all beings everywhere plagued
With sufferings of body and mind
Quickly be freed from their illnesses.
May those frightened cease to be afraid,
and may those bound, be free.
May the powerless find power,
And may people think of befriending
one another.
May those who find themselves in
trackless, fearful wilderness--
the children, the aged, the unprotected--
Be guarded by beneficial celestials,
And may they swiftly attain
Buddhahood.

POSTCARDS TO DEATH ROW INMATES

"It is time to abandon the death penalty -- not just because of what it does to those who are executed, but because of how it diminishes all of us... We ask all Catholics--pastors, catechists, educators and parishioners -- to join us in rethinking this difficult issue and committing ourselves to pursuing justice without vengeance. With our Holy Father, we seek to build a society so committed to human life that it will not sanction the killing of any human person.
------( "Responsibility, Rehabilitation, and Restoration: A Catholic Perspective on Crime and Criminal Justice," U.S. Catholic Bishops, Nov. 2000,)
Inmates on death row are the most forgotten people in the prison system. Each week I am posting in this space several inmates' names and locations. I invite you to write a postcard to one or more of them to let them know that: we have not forgotten them; are praying for them and their families; or, whatever personal encouragement you might like to give them. If you like, tell them you heard about them through North Carolina's, "People of Faith Against the Death Penalty." Thanks, Jude Siciliano, OP
Please write to:........................................
Jeffery Meyer #0280127 (On death row since 2/4/99)
Ted Prevatte #0330166 (2/22/99)
Raymond Thibodeaux #0515143 (3/2/99)
---Central Prison 1300 Western Blvd. Raleigh, NC 27606

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

CD Available: "FIRST IMPRESSIONS: PREACHING REFLECTIONS ON LITURGICAL YEAR B" This compilation, from past "First Impressions," includes two reflections on almost all Sundays and major feasts for this liturgical year. For more information and to purchase go to: http://judeop.ispraleigh.com/

ABOUT DONATIONS: If you would like to support this ministry, please send tax deductible contributions to Jude Siciliano, O.P., Make checks to "Dominican Friars of Raleigh." Mail contributions to: Jude Siciliano, O.P., Dominican Friars of Raleigh, P.O. Box 12927, Raleigh, N.C. 27605

REGULAR INFORMATION

I get notes from people responding to these reflections. Sometimes they tell how they use "First Impressions" in their ministry and for personal use. Others respond to the reflections, make suggestions and additions. I think our readers would benefit from these additional thoughts. If you drop me a BRIEF note, I will be happy to add your thoughts and reflections to my own. (Judeop@Juno.com)

Our webpage addresses:
(Where you will find "Preachers' Exchange," which includes these reflections and Homilias Dominicales, as well as articles, book reviews and quotes pertinent to preaching.)
http://www.opsouth.org Under "Preachers' Exchange"
http://www.op.org/exchange/

"Homilias Dominicales"-- these Spanish reflections are written by four friars of the Southern Dominican Province experienced in Hispanic Ministry, Isidore Vicente, Carmen Mele, Brian Pierce and Juan Martin Torres. Like "First Impressions", "Homilias Dominicales" are a preacher's early reflections on the upcoming Sunday readings and liturgy. So, if you or a friend would like to receive "Homilias Dominicales" drop a note to John Boll, O.P. at: jboll@opsouth.org
"First Impressions" is a service to preachers and those wishing to prepare for Sunday worship. It is sponsored by the Southern Dominican Province, U.S.A. If you would like "First Impressions" sent weekly to a friend, send a note to John Boll at the above Email address.
If you would like to support this ministry, please send tax deductible contributions to:
Jude Siciliano, OP, Promoter of Preaching
Southern Dominican Province, USA
P.O. Box 12927,
Raleigh, N.C. 27605
(919) 833-1893
Make checks to: Dominican Friars of Raleigh.
Thank you.