The Lord is My Shepherd - 4th Sunday of Easter Year A

More than a few years ago I was at Mass in Dallas, TX where I had been living when these sets of readings occurred. One of the deacons at the parish preached on these readings, lecturing the congregation on the lack of trust people have in institutions. Speaking directly to my generation, he questioned how it is that we could not put faith in the pillars of our society: government, business, religion.

Growing up I remember teacher after teacher, adult after adult told us kids that respect had to be earned, that it was not a right we had at birth. So, if this statement is true, then there could be plenty of reasons why our generation has trust issues. With respect to government, my generation grew up in the post Watergate era where we experienced countless instances of government lies and abuse of power. In the realm of business, my generation experienced the Keating five, the savings and loan debacle of the 80's, Enron, Arthur Anderson, and a host of other institutions who have cheated their shareholders and lied to the public. And dare we mention the ways in which religion has sadly led people to lose trust: the sexual abuse crisis, televangelists, and the use of violence in the name of religion. Needless to say, too much could be said to justify the lack of trust that exists in our world.

And yet we find ourselves present today at holy Mass. In spite of the many reasons why we should not trust we again come to the Church seeking nourishment and direction in our lives. The human person needs to trust in order to survive and thrive. On a horizontal level we cannot exist without trust, and we long to put our trust in people and institutions. The readings today provide us with the only place where such trust belongs - the Lord Jesus.

How are we to know that we can trust Jesus? The second reading provides the answer: Christ suffered for us, and left an example that we should follow in his footsteps. Jesus accepted insult, he suffered, and he handed himself over to death. He did not insult, he did not threaten, and he offered himself up. This example is meant for us who had gone astray like sheep. By following the example of Jesus we return to the shepherd and guardian of our souls. In this way is Jesus the Good Shepherd who leads the sheep to good pasture, and only by living as Christ do we ensure trust in the hearts and minds of people.

In the life of Israel there had been many just and upright shepherds to guide God's people: Abel the righteous, the holy patriarch Abraham, Moses and Joshua, and David the great king of Israel. And yet the Gospel text has Jesus say that all who came before him were thieves and robbers. Is this mere hyperbole, or does Jesus intend us to take these words literally? Surely these predecessors of Jesus were righteous leaders of God's people, and yet they fall short of the standard of being a shepherd. Jesus is that standard, and only by being united to him and following his example can we be led to green pastures. Only by following Jesus can we ourselves be authentic shepherds for the people of God. Only by accepting insult and giving none, by suffering while not threatening, and only by handing ourselves up to death for others without seeking relief from this vocation can we shepherd the people of God with authenticity - and only in this way will the people hear the voice of Christ and follow.

The lack of trust we experience is natural, and the distress we face in such times can be painful. As we seek to follow Christ the Good Shepherd, let us pray for good shepherds to be among us and seek the grace to be good examples ourselves: "Let us pray to God our helper in time of distress. God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, though your people walk in the valley of darkness, no evil should they fear; for they follow in faith the call of the shepherd whom you have sent for their hope and strength. Attune our minds to the sound of his voice, lead our steps in the path he has shown, that we may know the strength of his outstretched arm and enjoy the light of your presence forever. We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord. Amen."

Were Not Our Hearts Burning? - 3rd Sunday After Easter Year A

Recently the world witnessed the lastes from the realm of false antiquities: someone claims to possess the nails from Jesus' resurrection. Many people look to such items as well as apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary in various places throughout the world or on a piece of French toast at your local Denny's to bolster their faith. Millions of dollars are spent to span the globe in search of such phenomena, and yet the greatest presence of God on earth resides in your neighborhood Catholic Church - the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. Today's readings bring us back to the central elements of our faith.

The Gospel text relates the journey of two disciples who were leaving Jerusalem for Emmaus when they encounter Jesus on the way. However, the two men do not recognize Jesus while walking on the road. The conversation turns to the events of the past few days, event which the two men seem to know so well while their mysterious companion appears unaware. As they walk along the way Jesus proceeds to explain to them the scriptures concerning the Messiah and how the events of the past few days were necessary events in the life of the Messiah for the climax of salvation history. While Jesus speaks to them, their hearts are burning within them, yet they still do not recognize him until they stop for the evening and Jesus performs the Eucharistic action of breaking the bread. Then, they come to recognize Jesus, but he disappears from their sight. What are we to make of all this?

Jesus is not longer physically present to us as he was prior to his death. If we search for that presence in material objects or in alleged apparitions we will be disappointed. As the second reading points out, we have been ransomed from our futile conduct of seeking God's ransom in perishable things like silver or gold. Instead, we have been ransomed by the blood of the spotless lamb, Jesus the Christ. The presence of the risen Jesus is in the Word of God and in the sacramental actions of the Church, as the two men in the Gospel text discovered.

And yet there is more to be discovered. Jesus performed many great signs and works while on earth, just as God had done for the Israelites throughout salvation history. We encountered these various events during the Easter Vigil liturgy when we heard the many readings from the Old Testament regarding God's intervention in history. We have also heard the three great signts of Jesus in the weeks preceding Holy Week when we heard the encounter of Jesus with the Samaritan woman, the healing of the man born blind, and the raising of Lazarus. Many people long to experience such phenomena in our own time and they lose faith when such does not happen.

However, Peter tells the Israelite people in the first reading that Jesus has been raised and that they are now experiencing the effects of the Holy Spirit in the lives of Jesus' faithful people. The presence of the Holy Spirit works miracles in our own lives: just look at Peter in the first reading, the same Peter who fifty days earlier had denied Jesus thrice and ran away with all the others in fear. The Holy Spirit continues to have that effect in the lives of people in our own day, and he can have that effect in our own lives if we but recognize Jesus risen from the dead and present to us in Word and Sacrament. We celebrated just such a life last week in the beatification of Pope John Paul II. The Holy Spirit transformed a poor young man who lost both his parents at a young age to a state of holiness that inspired nations to seek freedom and led millions to a renewal of faith in their lives.

The miracles we seek should be the radical change of our own lives and the great deeds the Holy Spirit can do in us for others. As we acknowledge the presence of Jesus in our lives and listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us, we pray today with the universal Church: "Let us pray in confident peace and Easter hope. Father in heaven, author of all truth, a people once in darkness has listened to your Word and followed your Son as he rose from the tomb. Hear the prayer of this newborn people and strengthen your Church to answer your call. May we rise and come forth into the light of day to stand in your presence until eternity dawns. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen."