Homily for the Fourth Sunday of Easter (The Good Shepherd Sunday), Year C

Three Outstanding Qualities Of The Good Shepherd

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Homily for the Fourth Sunday of Easter (The Good Shepherd Sunday), Year C

St. Alphonsus Catholic Church, Brooklyn Church, MN

Sunday, April 21, 2024

On this Good Shepherd Sunday, let us reflect on the three qualities of a good shepherd, as guided by the words of our beloved Pope Francis. In discussing the relationship between a bishop or priest and the people, Pope Francis noted, “A good shepherd should be in front to lead, in the middle to encourage, and behind to protect and support the flock.”

Was Jesus this kind of shepherd? Did he lead out in front of the flock? Absolutely! When we speak about Jesus, we often say things like “Jesus is our brother,” “Jesus is our friend.” Remember the song: What a friend we have in Jesus… But the danger here is that it has led us to domesticate Jesus and make him too much of a friendly guy who will never be offended. I tell you, the image of Jesus as a friendly buddy is not always what the Gospels depicted of him. Littered in the Gospels are passages of the disciples and people being amazed by what Jesus did and said. In Mark 10:24, we hear that “The disciples were amazed at his words.” Why? Because Jesus wasn’t just their buddy; he wasn’t just their pal or their twin brother walking with them. He was one out in front of them, leading them toward a goal, a heavenly goal that they don’t know yet.  What about the Risen Jesus? When Mary Magdalene tried to hold him, Jesus said to her, “Stop holding on to me” (John 20:17), which means you cannot hold and constrain me. Jesus who passes through locked doors, who comes and goes, appears when he wants to his disciples, if I were with the Apostles, I would be afraid as well in the presence of that figure. The point here is that the Good Shepherd is out in front of the sheep. Where is he leading us? He is leading us to a place where “eyes have not seen, ears have not heard.” 

Secondly, the Good Shepherd has to be among the flock too. Is that true of Jesus? You betcha! In his public ministry, Jesus eats and drinks, especially with sinners, prostitutes, tax-collectors. I tell you, at that time, it was a scandalous behavior for a teacher, for a rabbi to be associating with public sinners. When two of John the Baptist’s disciples followed Jesus and asked him,  “Lord, where do you stay?” (John 1:38b) Jesus said, “Come and see” (John 1:39) and they stayed with him. When Jesus relocated from his hometown to Capernaum, it was generally believed by biblical scholars that he moved into the house of Simon Peter. More to it, Jesus was frequently seen in the boat with his Apostles. In the course of his ministry, he invited his disciples to a place of rest and recuperation: “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while” (Mark 6:31). Jesus was indeed among his disciples. He did smell the sheep. He is among them even as he is amazing and a little bit scary. Jesus is someone you can eat and drink with, but he is someone that can scare you too. 

Thirdly, Pope Francis said, a good shepherd should also lead the flock from the back. What is he doing at the back? He is attending to those who have fallen behind, who are wounded, afraid and excluded. Did Jesus fulfill this quality? Oh yes! Look at the Gospels and you will see how prominent this is in the ministry of the Lord. Jesus reaches out to the lonely woman at the well who was ostracized by her community. Jesus reaches out to the man born blind, who was considered by the society as cursed by God. To the chief tax collector, Zacchaeus, Jesus reaches out too. What about the woman caught in the act of adultery? Jesus also reaches out to her. In all the Gospels, Jesus is presented as someone deeply attentive to those who have fallen behind. So, in all these three senses, Jesus is indeed the True and Good Shepherd. 

Now, should Church leaders try to emulate the kind of shepherd that Jesus is and that Pope Francis described? Yes indeed! If a shepherd is to effectively lead the flock, he must know the way to the destination. Otherwise, he and the flock would wander aimlessly. With time, the flock will become exhausted, hungry, and thirsty. Therefore, a good shepherd must be at the forefront, guiding the way. This is the reason why shepherds in the Church are also theologians, and should also be people of prayer. What’s the study of theology? What does prayer do? They lift you up into this higher realm so you understand where the Church is going.

More to it, Pope Francis said a good shepherd should be “in the middle (of the flock) to encourage.” What does it mean? If the only thing a shepherd does is to be out in front of the sheep, he will lose contact with them eventually. If he is simply leading out in front without being in their midst as well, he won’t know them, he won’t understand them, and he won’t feel for them. He will lose contact with the sheep. Why? Because he is so far out in front that he won’t be able to smell the sheep, as Pope Francis once said. So, while he leads the flock out in front, he also has to be among the sheep, he has to be in contact with them. He has to communicate to the people and let them know that he is there among them. He has to make himself available to the people. He has to be present to the people. His ministry is a ministry of presence. A large part of the ministry of the shepherd is showing up. Just as a good dad shows up at his kids’ events— their games and their tournaments, their concerts and so on, that’s a big part of the job for me as the pastor of my parish. If there is no conflict of events, I have to show up to events and be present.

Additionally, Pope Francis also said a good shepherd should be “behind the flock.” What is he doing at the back? He is attending to those who are struggling, who feel alienated, who have fallen away. He is paying attention to those who are sick, lame and are being threatened by predators. If he doesn’t do that, he will soon have no flock at all. So a good shepherd has to be in front of the flock, among the flock and behind the flock. The late Cardinal Francis George of Chicago was quoted as saying, “It’s great that you teach the moral teaching of the Church with such clarity. I’m glad you do that. But if all you do is drop that teaching on people, and then walk away, you’re not accomplishing very much. You are not a pastor.” The pastor speaks the truth, but he is also very attentive to those who, for whatever reason, have a difficult time embodying those truths.

May God help me and all the shepherds of the Church have these same qualities.