Friends,
This week we hear the words of the Good Shepherd from the Gospel. We identify Jesus with the image of the Good Shepherd, the one who loves his sheep so dearly he would lay down his life for them. And this is precisely what we just celebrated in Holy Week. Jesus came and died for our sins, he loved us that much that he would do that for you and for me. This is the kind of God we have, not an angry spiteful God but one who loves us so dearly that he would sacrifice himself because of the mistakes we make in life. THAT is the definition of unconditional love.
Do we model our own lives following the Good Shepherd? Think about it for a moment. What in life would you give up everything for, perhaps even your own life? Some of the common answers we might come up to that question would be a spouse... our children... our grand children... perhaps a close friend. But would we say the very same thing about a stranger, or even more challenging an enemy? Could we show that same level of love that Jesus showed on the cross? Perhaps we all have a long way to go in these regards but Jesus example of love, the example of the Good Shepherd, is the one that continues to challenge our own limitations of Love to be a people who would lay down their lives for their sheep.
Let us continue to celebrate these Easter realities. Happy Easter
Fr Mark
