Homily for the Fourth Sunday of Easter April 22, 2018
Fr. Albert St. Peter’s, New Iberia
“A good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep.” Perhaps these are the words that the Holy Spirit whispers to Peter as he stands before these Jewish leaders, the very same people who killed Jesus. Surely, he knows that challenging these men could very well lead to his death, but it does not stop him. Like a good shepherd, this first Pope boldly proclaims that “There is no salvation through anyone [other than Jesus Christ], nor is there any other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved.” In other words, only Christianity has the full truth; Only Jesus gets us to heaven. And Peter says this to the leaders of the Jews, the chosen people of God who, until then had the exclusive claim on God’s revelation and salvation. But the Good Shepherd does not back down from the truth, he does not run from the wolves of falsehood and pride, even if it should get him killed.
And yet, I hope that I don’t need to prove to Catholics at Sunday Mass that only Catholicism has the full Truth, even though many others have some of the pieces. I’m betting that what you probably need to hear now is what to do with that Truth. If you already know that only Jesus saves us, the next question is “how do I get saved by Jesus?” That brings us to this immensely powerful statement from Jesus: “I know [my sheep] and mine know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father and I will lay down my life for the sheep.” It is a very concise summary of how we are saved: Knowing, Loving, Laying down one’s life.
First, we have the fact that Jesus knows his sheep. Shouldn’t that be automatic? Jesus is God and God knows everything, right? In an objective sense, yes, Jesus the Son of God knows everything. But, he is talking about knowing someone in a more personal way. When people are “getting to know each other,” it usually means conversation, doing things together, and generally spending time together. So, Jesus knows you, but do allow him to “get to know” you? Do you share your hopes and fears, dreams, desires, and concerns with Him? Yes, pray your memorized prayers, but also talk to him. Yell at him if you have to, but please, let Jesus get to know you!
And we cannot forget that Jesus’ sheep also know him back. Sadly, there are a lot of fake Jesuses out there. Jesus the pushover, Jesus the political revolutionary, Jesus the judgmental rule-giver… the list goes on. In fact, there is a fake version of Jesus for every human being out there. Each and every one of us can – and often does – get caught up in the Jesus of our own imagination. When you think of Jesus, how much of what you imagine comes from a reliable source? How much is arbitrary and based on your own preferences? The imaginary Jesus in each of our minds could be the Jesus who always agrees with us or, on the opposite extreme, the Jesus who can’t possibly love and forgive us.
And the imaginary, fake Jesus is exactly why the real Jesus gave us the Catholic Church with its Apostles, Bishops, and massive collection of official teachings and practices. The Catholic Church is Jesus… it is His body on earth. The Catholic Church is the reliable way to get to know the real Jesus, to get around all the biases, prejudices, and imaginary hang-ups that can so easily distort the Jesus we tend to imagine for ourselves – the idol we carve with our pride and vanity.
Secondly, we have a description of how Jesus knows us and we know him: We know each other as the Father knows me and I know the Father. More than being buddies with Jesus, we need to be as intimately connected to him as he is to the Father. That’s a reference to the Trinity, to the mystery of One God in Three Persons. In particular, the way Jesus knows the Father is seen in Love.
We often refer to the Pope and Bishops and Priests as shepherds even though Jesus clearly says there will be one shepherd. But, this mutual knowledge and love of the divine Father and Son explains it. The Church’s “shepherds” are not really separate from Jesus the one shepherd. They participate in Jesus’ shepherd-hood, they are meant to reveal the one shepherd in a way similar to the way that Jesus reveals God the Father. The knowledge and love of Father and Son is what gives us the priesthood and it’s what makes every one of us a part of Christ’s mission.
Finally, we come to what this knowledge and love looks like. God the Father gives everything to God the Son, Jesus Christ. In return, Jesus Christ loves the Father by laying down his life for his sheep. Jesus loves us like the Father loves him. That means we need to love him back in the same way he loves the Father back. There is a mirror effect here. Father loves Son. Son lays down life for others to love the Father. God loves us. We lay down our lives for others to love God back.
So, getting to heaven means knowing Jesus and being known by him. This means being loved by him and loving him back. That means laying down our lives for others.
We often ask children “what do you want to be when you grow up?” Really, it should be, what does God want me to be when I grow up? And the Lord’s answer is simple: He wants you to grow up to be someone who loves, someone who lays down their life in love like the Good Shepherd lays down his life.
And the particular way we do that is called our vocation: Marriage, Priesthood, Consecrated life… Today is the world day of prayer for vocations, so it’s a good time to reflect on this reality, to pray for our young people to be open to their unique call to love. Especially today, our prayer should be for their openness to the possibility of something other than the natural default of marriage. The way to discover our vocation – or to deepen the one we’ve already begun – is to Love.
Accept and recommit to the love Jesus has for you by letting him get to know you as a person. In that prayer of conversation, ask him to reveal his desires for you, his plans for your love and happiness. Throughout your whole life never stop learning from Him and from His Church what it means to accept his love in the Sacraments. Share that love with other by serving the people already in your life.
Marriage is essential and good; Holy families are crucial for the future of the Church. For those of you already married, dig a little deeper; Learn what it means to love your spouse as Christ loves the Church and the Church loves Christ. But, for those of you who still have a long future ahead of you, be open to God’s call. I am happy. I know many happy monks, nuns, brothers, sisters, and missionaries who are happy. You don’t need to “discern” marriage; That is the natural, default way. Give God first “dibs” on your life, give him a chance to call you to love the Church in a more direct and consecrated way. Maybe he will call you to this and maybe he won’t. Either way, there is literally no reason in heaven or on earth that you should be afraid of God’s plan for you. He is omniscient and he is Love, so his plan is always the best plan. I bet my life on it.
Ultimately, the inescapable truth is that laying down our lives in love is the best way – the only way to find happiness – and heaven. If that’s true, then who better listen to than the God who is Love? Who better to follow than the Good Shepherd who died for you?