Acts of the Apostles. 7

April 13, 2008

4^th Sunday of Easter

“Amen, Amen, I say to you, I am the gate for the sheep.”

This Sunday, we celebrate what is traditionally known as “Good Shepherd Sunday.” The Church pauses to reflect on the proclamation that Jesus is the Good Shepherd of us all; that His laying down of His life for us brings us back home to God after our time of straying away.

The image of Jesus as the good shepherd is one of the oldest in the Church, including her liturgy. In the roman catacombs of Santa Priscilla, there is a late 1^st century/early 2^nd century fresco of the Good Shepherd carrying the lost sheep on his shoulders adjacent to one of the burial niches of the early Christians. For the early Church identifying Christ as “Good Shepherd” offered consolation and reassurance during times of persecution, but it also symbolized the good news; that God was calling all humanity to salvation, love, and unity through the life and death and risen life of the Good Shepherd.

The image of the Good Shepherd actually had a long legacy in the history of the people of Israel. Jesus’ references mainly go back to the book of the Prophet Zechariah, who is also quoted by the evangelists throughout the Passion. Zechariah receives a vision of a Good Shepherd from God: He will lead the people in their resettlement and return from exile and He will help the people to stay faithful to God.

Yet, Zechariah’s vision was also a blunt critique and rebuke of the corrupt political and religious establishment. Many in the ruling classes sold out to the Persian overlords and lacked legitimacy in the eyes of God. They tolerated unjust economic practices that hurt the poor and they allowed pagan rituals to enter the land. They were vassals and figureheads, but because the original monarchy and priesthood were almost destroyed, the people had nowhere to turn.

The vision of the Good Shepherd then offered hope to the people that God would rescue them. This Messianic figure would also be for all humanity.

We see in Jesus the fulfillment of this vision. He rescues us, gives us hope, calls us to unity, and grounds us to stand up to corruption. Only He has and gives legitimacy. Only He speaks for God. When we go through Him, the “sheepgate,” we find the way to God – by uniting our passions, dying-to-self with His laying His life down for us so that we may partake in His risen Life.

-Rev. Todd Molinari

http://www.stjosephchurch.com/pastor.html