(GOOD SHEPHERD SUNDAY)

Rev. Fr. (Dr.) Osmond Anike

Readings:

First Reading: Acts 2:14, 36-41 – God has made him both Lord and Christ.

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 22(23) – The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

Second Reading:1 Peter 2:20-25 – You have come back to the shepherd of your souls.

Gospel: John 10:1-10 – I am the gate of the sheepfold.

The 4^th Sunday of Easter is usually celebrated as the Good Shepherd Sunday. Jesus often uses imageries to convey his teachings to his contemporaries who very much understand them. Today, he uses the imageries of sheep, shepherd, and sheepfold. These are imageries associated with countryside whose principal occupation was that of farming. Jesus was not born into nobility. He belonged to this group of peasants; and he recruited his first disciples equally from this group of people. It is not surprising therefore, that many of his parables and imageries are associated with farming because he was addressing an audience which was at home with his language. However, in this 21^st Century, it presents a great challenge to the millennials to understand and appreciate some of these imageries. Except for some who might have grown up in villages and consequently might have had the firsthand opportunity of witnessing farmers dealing with their livestock, many of these millennials’ idea of sheep and other farm animals may have come only from what they see on televisions and internets

When Jesus therefore, tells us in the gospel of today that, “I am the gate of the sheepfold… Anyone who does not enter the sheepfold through the gate, but gets in some other way is a thief and a brigand”, it might be difficult for the people of this generation to fully comprehend what he is saying. First of all, the concept of “gate” does not sit well with people of nowadays. In their worldview, it connotes restriction; and because people want liberty not restriction, there is the tendency to view this imagery that Jesus uses in the light of restriction, and therefore, as something that infringes on somebody’s liberty. Secondly, this generation is an adventurous one who would do anything and everything to try out alternative solutions to a problem. If there is only one gate available through which everyone is expected to enter, this generation would always want to “crack the puzzle” and come out with alternatives in order not to “waste time” at the gate waiting for one’s turn to enter. Thirdly, the concept of “sheepfold” appears to run contrary to today’s preferred practice of individualism. How then can we present Jesus as the Good shepherd so that the current crop of Christians will be able to fully understand it?

Perhaps the first thing to do is to try to translate Jesus’ language into the language that is more comprehensible to people of this age. When Jesus says that he is the gate of the sheepfold, he is simply saying that he is our computer security. He is at the same time our search engine, browser as well as administrator. As the administrator, he holds the correct password with which we can successfully access our computer and/or network (our very existence). He regularly provides antivirus software so that we can be protected, without being exposed to “computer” virus. To use his password to access our computer means that we have authorization to access the computer or network.  However, those who try to generate contrary passwords are hackers (“thieves and brigands”). If you try to use their false passwords or other tricks that hackers use (“getting in through some other way other than the gate”), you will only succeed in exposing your system to virus. Jesus further says: “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life and have it to the full”. When you translate this to the language of today, you will realize that hackers are there only to steal your information, kill your reputation and destroy your computer. They trick you through phishing and other malicious activities; and if you are not careful, you might fall victim. It is only the “host administrator” that has your interest at heart. He does everything within his/her ability to alert you to the malicious activities going on so that you will be better protected. These are some of the languages that this generation understands probably far better that the imageries that Jesus used in his days. And no matter how adventurous people of nowadays are; no matter how much they value their liberty and individuality, they are always very conscious that they need to remain electronically protected in order to remain connected. But this is exactly what Jesus does for us as the Good shepherd. As our browser and search engine, he makes sure that we are always protected by supplying us with updates so that we can remain spiritually connected to the higher realm without being exposed to malicious activities.

One of the updates he rolled out today came in the form of Peter’s preaching in the first reading. You see, when updates are rolled out, one is expected to take actions. It is the same with every sermon preached or every word of God read or listened to. It must evoke some reaction in the mind of the hearer. The reaction can either be negative or positive. When updates are rolled out, one can either chose to react negatively by refusing to click on the update; or positively by clicking on it. The consequences of both actions are not the same. In the same way, when one listens to a sermon, one might chose a negative reaction by not taking any action (refusing to click on the update); or a positive reaction by softening one’s heart and seeking for ways of amending one’s life (clicking on the update). Peter’s hearers in the first reading chose to have a positive reaction by clicking on the update and requesting to know which further actions they are to take: “What must we do?” Peter then replied to them that, to finish update, you must close every open browser and restart your computer (“you must repent, and every one of you must be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins…”).

Why do we need to restart our computer after installing updates? It is precisely because they have been exposed to virus and therefore, only the complete closure of every open browser and a restart of our system will guarantee that the computer will begin to function normal again. When you reboot your computer, you get rid of the remnants of virus that might still linger even when you might have installed the update. This is exactly how repentance functions. It reboots one’s life, and one makes a total about turn, a total break with the past through the closure of every open browser in one’s life and a restart of one’s life. Only then can our lives begin to function normal again. In this sense, therefore, repentance does neither mean reducing the frequency of one’s vices nor exchanging one vice for another. Nobody installs an antivirus simply to reduce the virus in his computer. You install the antivirus to kill the entire virus. And again, it is unthinkable that one should consciously strive to exchange one form of virus for another form all in the name of protecting one’s computer. This is a crazy idea to think of. In the same way, if it is repentance that one seeks, one has to approach it as radically as one approaches the virus in one’s computer. There are no half measures in both cases. Both equally require optimal urgency to kick start; and both require patience and time to see through the process. It is an irony that our age that has been qualified as a jet age because of our penchant for always being in a hurry in everything we do, still devote a lot of time to make sure that our computers function very well. Speed has taken over our planet. The faster we go the better we think it is. Yet, when it comes to protecting our electronic gadgets, we take our time to close our browsers and restart our system. Nobody thinks that it is a waste of time to stop whatever one is doing on the computer, install an update, and restart the computer once more. The reason is obvious: to postpone an update is to further expose your system to danger. Every other thing we are doing must have to wait until we must have installed updates and restarted our computer. This process could take from a couple of minutes to a couple of hours (depending on the type of updates). But it doesn’t matter, since it is in our overall interest to exercise some patience and get it right. Why then should we think that our very lives need not be restarted? It is never a waste of time to install updates in our lives and close every open browser in order to restart our lives to function better. The name of this process is called repentance. Repentance, like installing computer updates, is an urgent business. It should never be postponed.

As we journey through life, may we never be so consumed with activities that we forget to check for our life’s update! And when such updates are rolled out, it is imperative that we stop whatever else we are doing to update it. Our lives need constant updating in order to function smoothly.