Fourth Sunday of Easter
When people think of cherubs, I think our minds immediately go to the pudgy, babies with little wings, like what you would see in a Raphael painting. In the Book of Ezekiel, they are described as having two sets of wings, and four faces (lion, ox, human, and eagle). John describes them similarly in the Book of Revelation, but with three sets of wings, instead of two. If a cherub as described in the Bible showed up, you might understand why the first words out of angels’ mouths are generally, “Do not be afraid!”
First of all, to be called a sheep is not a compliment. Sheep are not smart animals. That is why they need shepherds. Not only are they easy prey, but I read somewhere that the reason they have to be moved, is because they will eat up all the grass, roots and all, if left in a solitary pasture. So not too flattering for us.
We do hear how the Good Shepherd knows His sheep, and elsewhere, Jesus says that He will go after the lost sheep. We like that image. Probably because we, like sheep, wander off to dangerous places that we should not go. But this presumes that, when we hear the voice of the shepherd, we want to return to the good pastures. The picture we hear from the Acts of the Apostles today gives us a different glimpse.
Paul and Barnabas are preaching in the synagogue in Antioch, in modern-day Turkey. As Paul preaches to them that Jesus is the Messiah, at first they are open. But, as they see non-Jews starting to accept the message, they turn and become agitated with Paul and Barnabas, and start rejecting them and their message of salvation through Jesus. They eventually get enough people to expel Paul and Barnabas from the territory. The message of life and truth as rejected, even by the people prepared by God to accept that same message, because they had the prophets preparing them for the Messiah, the prophecies of which Jesus fulfilled.
So, too, we can think that if we hear the truth that we will readily accept it. If the Good Shepherd tells us something that we need to hear, we will listen, especially if it’s for our own good. And if He invites us back to the good pastures, that we will naturally follow.
As we celebrate Mother’s Day today, we honor our mothers for all they have done for us, especially giving us the gift of life. But think about your own mothers: even when they were saying something that was for your own good, did you always listen? I’ll admit I didn’t. So if we don’t do that with our own mothers, from whom we learn what love is, do we think that we’ll do better with Jesus?
The same goes with our Holy Mother Church. She often tells us that we should do X, or should avoid Y, and how often do we end up saying something like, “Mind your own business!”? The Church is the Mystical Body of Christ. She speaks for Her Groom, Christ Jesus. She applies what He taught us for salvation to new times and circumstances. When it comes to faith and morals, hers is the voice of the Good Shepherd, leading us to the pastures of everlasting life. But how often would we rather do our own will and follow our own so-called wisdom, rather than following the wisdom and will of the Good Shepherd?
We see this in our own day with abortion. If you’ve seen the news recently, you’ve seen an opinion paper, leaked from the Supreme Court, which advocates overturning Roe v. Wade. Now, the Church has been clear since the first century of Christianity, that abortion is not consistent with being a follower of Christ. Anyone who truly follows Christ cannot support abortion. The Church, especially in recent years, has “followed the science” (to use a phrase in vogue right now) to remind us that the infant in the womb is a unique human being, with unique DNA, even while in the womb of the mother. It is not a potential human, it is a human with potential. We have marched and talked about the value of every human life, and promoted adoption, in case a mother has no support to raise the child she has conceived. Even children born from sexual assault have talked about their own value as a human being, and how glad they are that their mother followed the will of God and chose life. And yet, with all these good witnesses, people, sometimes even Catholics, sometimes even very prominent Catholics like our president, promote abortion and do not heed the voice of the Good Shepherd, pleading for the life of those little lambs in the womb.
Today, let’s listen to the voice of the Good Shepherd, in all areas that He speaks. Let’s pray for all mothers today and ask God to help them to be the best mothers they can be. That includes mothers whose children came to term and whom they raised; mothers who suffered the great sorrow and loss of miscarriage or stillborn children; and especially pray for mothers who made the decision to abort their child, that they have a conversion of heart and that the wounds that abortion causes are healed. May we all–mothers, fathers, and children–be attentive to and listen to the voice of the Good Shepherd today and every day.
