Monday of the Fourth Week of Easter
(Acts 11:1-18; John 10:11-18)
A woman had an executive position with a Church
organization. Yet she put her life on
hold to take care of her mother in a persistent vegetative state. The woman was not looking for admiration, much
less to be called a saint or to be paid.
She gave of herself out of love for her mother and for God. She wanted to please God who, she knew, commanded
attention to one’s parents. This woman
was acting like Jesus as he describes himself in today’s gospel.
The gospel completes Jesus’ Good Shepherd Discourse begun in
yesterday’s mass. Where yesterday he
identified himself as the “gate for the sheep,” today he uses the more familiar
metaphor. He gives two reasons why the
analogy obtains. First, he will die for
his sheep, and secondly, he knows his sheep.
Jesus also knows that God, the Father, loves him for giving his life to
save his sheep.
When we pray to God, “…lead us not into temptation,” we are
asking deliverance from situations like the woman in the true story or like
Jesus. If we do find ourselves facing a
difficult task, there may be alternatives which would cost us less than
everything. Nevertheless, we should also pray regularly that if complete self-sacrifice
is ever required, we will summon the love and courage to meet the challenge.
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