Gospel: Good Shepherd Sunday

Today marks the Fourth Sunday of Easter and the Gospel reading will be lifted from the report of St John (click here for the Mass readings from the USCCB).

The fourth Sunday of Easter is also called Good Shepherd Sunday. In each of the three lectionary cycles, the Gospel is taken fom the tenth chapter of the Gospel of St John. This chapter follows Jesus healing of a man born blind and the rejection of this miracle by Jewish leaders who question Jesus' authority to heal. Jesus responds to this challenge to his authority by calling himself Good Shepherd. He is criticizing the Pharisees and other Jewish leaders. Already, the Pharisees and other Jewish leaders are so angred that they attempt to stone and arrest Jesus (see John 10:31 and 10:39). This controversy with religious leaders continues until Jesus' death.

Set in a moment of tension and conflict in St John's Gospel, todays Gospel reading is Jesus' answer to the question, "Are you the Messiah?" Jesus responds by saying, in essence, "If you have to ask, then you are not one of my sheep." Then Jesus asserts his unity with the Father. At the conclusion of these words, St John writes that the Jews intend to stone Jesus for blasphemy, but he escapes arrest.

We may be less familiar with the metaphors of sheep and shepherd than those to him Jesus spoke. The image of Jesus as Good Shepherd and the community of followers as his sheep has endured over the centuries as a primary image in our faith tradition. Its power to describe the relationship between Jesus and his followers transcends direct experience with sheep. The image speaks to us about the protection, security, and care that shepherds represent for their sheep.

Today's Gospel speaks powerfully about the familiarity and intimacy between Jesus and his disciples, expressed as recognizing and knowing another voice. Today's Gospel also speaks to the relationship between Jesus and the Father. In the Gospel of St John, Jesus identifies so closely with the Father that he tells us that they are one--not just close, but actually one. To know Jesus is to know the Father. Jesus doesn't just bring us closer to the Father, Jesus puts us directly in touch with God the Father, removing all distance between us. Our relationship with Jesus is an invitation to share in the life of God. 

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This blog entry is sponsored by Louis Vuitton Trainer Sneakers.