HEAR HIS VOICE IN ALL CIRCUMSTANCES

 

The fourth Sunday of Easter is dedicated to the world day of prayer for vocations to priesthood. The gospel reading of this Sunday is usually taken from passages that deal with Jesus, the Good Shepherd. This year we have the reading from Jn 10:1-10 wherein Jesus presents Himself as the shepherd and the door of the sheepfold. In this passage we could see the deep connection or bond or relationship that exists between the sheep and the shepherd. The shepherd is familiar with His sheep. He knows them by name. It is easy to know human beings through their names but to know animals through their name is very difficult, because most of them look alike. Yet Jesus says, the shepherd knows the sheep through its name. This is possible if only the shepherd has known the sheep through and through. One has to spend lot of time with the sheep to get familiar and differentiate one sheep from the other. The shepherd does so. Because He cares for his sheep. His whole life is focused on the sheep. Their wellbeing is his wellbeing. Their happiness is his happiness. Their concern is his concern. Jesus as the good shepherd wants to spend lot of time with us, the sheep. He wants to know each one of us through and through. As creator He knows everything about us. Yet He wants to spend time with us and know about us through us and from us. He wants to relate with us. He does not want to subjugate us. He does not want to rule over us as big boss. He wishes that we follow His paths by hearing His voice. Following His paths is not a compulsion placed on us but an opportunity given to us to share in His goodness. His paths are always safe and good. He reveals His good paths out of His sheer goodness. This revelation is for our goodness and wellbeing.

We can follow His paths if only we hear His voice. The shepherd always walks ahead. The sheep follows the shepherd by hearing his voice. To know His paths we need to tune our ears to His words. He speaks to us through the Word of God, prayers, Holy Mass and in the reception of the Sacraments. Today we have many voices to direct our lives. All voices are not the same. We can choose the voice we want to follow. We can follow the voice that pleases us or the voice that leads us into goodness. What always pleases need not be good. Similarly, what is good may not be pleasing to us always. What is needed is goodness and wellbeing. Pleasures are not the criteria to choose the paths. First and foremost, we need to know the voice of the Lord to hear His voice in all circumstances. His voice is always one and the same. His voice has no compromises, no lies, no suspicion and so forth.

The gospel also tells that the sheep run away from the voice of the strangers. If we are not able to recognize His voice, at least we can run away from the voice of the strangers, the devil. We have one voice to follow but many voices to reject. At once we cannot find His voice. It is in the course of rejecting the voices of the evil one that we find His voice. The voices that change and fluctuate are devious. We need to reject those voices. In the first reading of today the people gathered in Jerusalem are able to recognize the voice of the Holy Spirit through the mouth of St. Peter. We need to be like those people. They are able to recognize His voice because they listened to the preaching of St. Peter attentively. Of course, St. Peter too preached with the assistance of the Holy Spirit. Today’s problem is unwillingness to listen. All want to talk but no one wants to listen. All want to communicate but no one wants to receive the communication. Humility consists in listening and receiving. Lack of listening in the world exhibits the sense of pride that dominates the world. Pride is the first and the greatest sin against God. We need to listen to God. We need to listen to people. We need to listen to the shepherd. At the same time, the shepherds (i.e, priests) have the duty to get the assistance of the Holy Spirit in their preaching.

As we pray for more vocations to priesthood. We need to intensify our prayers for the priest to be good shepherds who always walks with the assistance of the Holy Spirit. We do need to pray for the grace to hear His voice in our shepherds’ teaching. May Jesus, the good shepherd open our ears to hear His voice in all circumstances.