Sunday, 12 May 2019 4th Sunday of Easter 1st Reading: Acts 13:14, 43-52 2nd Reading: Revelation 7:9, 14-17 Gospel: John 10:27-30
My sheep hear my voice and I know them; they follow me and I give them eternal life. They shall never perish and no one will ever steal them from me. What the Father has given me is stronger than everything and no one can snatch it from the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”
D@iGITAL-EXPERIENCE
(Daily Gospel in the Assimilated Life Experience)
Today is Good Shepherd Sunday. In the Philippines where there are few sheep, the counterpart is called ‘Magtutugway’ (from the Visayan tugway) and the ‘magpapastol’ (from the Tagalog pastol). The ‘Magtutugway’ merely takes the animal to a grassy place, ties it to a tree and leaves the animal behind to graze by itself the whole day. The “Magpapastol”, on the other hand, accompanies the animal to graze the whole day in the meadow. Jesus is not a “magtutugway” but a “magpapastol” who never leaves the sheep untended.
Experts say that a sheep has a very short vision; it cannot see beyond its immediate vicinity. That is why sheep always gather in herds and are dependent on a shepherd. When the shepherd abandons the flock, they get lost. We are like shortsighted sheep; we never see ahead the implications of an evil deed. We need a shepherd.
We cannot talk about Jesus the Good Shepherd without talking about priests because they concretize Jesus’ role of shepherding. Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI gives special focus on priests’ life of witnessing as generator of vocations. He points out three aspects in the life of a priest essential for an effective priestly witness, namely, friendship with Christ, complete consecration of self to God, and life of communion.
In regard to friendship with Christ, the Pope Emeritus writes: “If the priest is a “man of God”, one who belongs to God and helps others to know and love him, he cannot fail to cultivate a deep intimacy with God, abiding in his love and making space to hear his Word.” In regard to complete consecration of self to God, the Pope Emeritus calls on all priests to be as self giving like Christ, quoting the Apostle John who wrote, “By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us; and therefore we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren” (1 Jn 3:16). In regard to a life of communion the Pope Emeritus is asking priests to be instruments of communion, ever ready to forgive and to reconcile.
Priests are the hands and feet of Jesus in his role as ‘magpapastol’ to all of us. They are therefore signs of God’s caring hand. Let us support them with an environment conducive to a life of witnessing. – (Atty.) Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., D.M.
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