First Reading

A reading from the Acts of the Apostles (2:14a, 36-41)

Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice, and proclaimed: "Let the whole house of Israel know for certain that God has made both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified."

Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and they asked Peter and the other apostles, "What are we to do, my brothers?" Peter said to them, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promised is made to you and to your children and to all those far off, whomever the Lord our God will call." He testified with many other arguments, and was exhorting them, "Save yourselves from this corrupt generation." Those who accepted this message were baptized, and about three thousand persons were added that day.

(P) The word of the Lord.
(R) Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalms of David (23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6)

(R) The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. In verdant pastures He gives me repose; beside restful waters He leads me; He refreshes my soul. (R)

He guides me in right paths for his name's sake. Even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; for you are at my side with your rod and your staff that give me courage. (R)

You spread the table before me in the sight of my foes; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. (R)

Only goodness and kindness follow me all the days of my life; and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for years to come. (R)

Second Reading

A reading from the First Letter of Saint Peter (2:20b-25)

Beloved: If you are patient when you suffer for doing what is good, this is a grace before God. For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his footsteps. He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth. When he was insulted, he returned no insult; when he suffered, he did not threaten; instead, he handed himself over to the one who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body upon the cross, so that, free from sin, we might live for righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you had gone astray like sheep, but you have now returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.

(P) The word of the Lord.
(R) Thanks be to God.

Gospel

A reading from the Gospel according to John (10:1-10)

Jesus said: "Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever does not enter a sheepfold through the gate but climbs over elsewhere is a thief and a robber. But whoever enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice, as the shepherd calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has driven out all his own, he walks ahead of them, and the sheep follow him, because they recognize his voice. But they will not follow a stranger; they will run away from him, because they do not recognized the voice of strangers." Although Jesus used this figure of speech, the Pharisees did not realize what he was trying to tell them.

So Jesus said again, "Amen, amen, I say to you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters through me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy; I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly."

(P) The Gospel of the Lord.
(R) Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Homily

A man went into a coma for many months. His wife stayed by his bed side waiting for him to wake up. One day he came out of the coma, and looked at his wife lovingly and said, "Darling, you have been with me through the loss of my job; you stayed by my side when we got hit by the truck; you have always been by my side through all the bad things that had happened. The wife smiled with pride and love for him. Then the husband said to her, "I think you bring me bad luck."

Suffering is a common experience we all share even though none of us likes it. We try to avoid it. We despise it. We pray desperately to escape from it. We blame God or others for it. Some people view suffering as bad luck. Some consider it as punishment for past misdeeds. Some see it as a curse. Whereas the message that Saint Peter gives us in today's second reading is rather controversial. He says that suffering is a mark of God's grace in our life, and we are called to suffering. Let us study the text to understand it better.

The first letter of Peter is believed to have been written by Saint Peter, the Apostle, to the Jewish Christians who had fled from Jerusalem because of persecution, and were scattered throughout Asia Minor which today is called Turkey. Today's text is a part of the exhortation he gave specifically to household or domestic servants. According to history, slavery began with the Roman conquests, and there were as many as 60 million slaves who performed a variety of tasks, many of whom did menial jobs. They were not allowed to marry, and even if they had children out of wedlock those offspring became the property of the master. They had absolutely no rights whatsoever. The disciples of Jesus addressed this situation with the message of God's infinite love to all people in equal measure, and that every human being is precious in the sight of the Lord. As a result of their preaching, the great majority of the early Christians came from the lowest social ranks, and many of them were salves. For example, Saint Callistus, one of the earliest bishops of Rome, was a slave in the imperial Roman household. In some instances both master and servants became Christians. So the apostles encouraged a new relationship of brotherhood between master and servant, and a new attitude to work. It is in this context, influenced by the thoughts and words of Isaiah on The Exaltation of the Suffering Servant of the Lord, that Peter writes the following words.

He writes, "If you are patient when you suffer for doing what is good, this is a grace before God. For to this you have been called because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his footsteps", Peter (2:20-21). Peter urged the Christian servants to remember the suffering of Jesus Christ during his period of trial and execution, as they sought to endure patiently their own trials and sufferings. It does not mean that Peter condoned slavery or servitude but rather encouraged the Christian servants to submit to their masters in the context of suffering for the sake of godly conduct. That's to say, if they were suffering ridicule, insults, humiliation, emotional and even physical abuse at the hands of their masters, despite their loyalty and perseverance, they could still imitate the Lord's patience in suffering because Christ also suffered for them. Like all Christians, servants were called to follow the example of Jesus Christ.

Then Peter explained what kind of life Jesus lived. He said that Jesus did not sin either by word or deed. There was no guile or deceit in Jesus, and yet he suffered unjustly. When he was reviled and called a glutton and a drunkard and a devil, he did not rebuke them but rather suffered patiently, and submitted silently to the unjust judgment of the Jews and Pontius Pilate. Jesus had no sins of his own to bear. He bore the sins of humankind in his body upon the cross. So too Peter wanted the Jewish Christian servants to be patient even in the face of unjust treatment, and to remember Jesus Christ who was scourged and treated unjustly and harshly, while he was completely innocent. Finally, Peter reminded them of the time when they had gone astray like sheep, perhaps referring to their disobedience and unfaithfulness to God, and their hatred, anger and envy toward their masters, and said that they have now returned to the shepherd, referring to Jesus Christ as the Good Shepherd, who would watch over them, and guard their souls.

Friends, what is the message for us? First of all, Peter reminds us that an essential feature of our calling to Christian faith is the suffering of evil in return for good. As Christians we are and will always be subjected to the holy and precious cross. For instance, you may have read the story of a Dutch Jesuit, Father Frans, who was abducted by Muslim armed men who beat him and then executed him with two bullets in the head in his church in the city of Homs in Syria on April 7. Father Frans had provided refuge to Muslim and Christian families whose homes had been destroyed by bombing. He loved his people so much that he had declined several opportunities to leave the city because he wanted to share the pain and suffering of the Syrian people. The reward of his love for Jesus Christ and fifty years of dedicated service to the people of Syria, was execution. In another Syrian city, recently two Christian boys were martyred, one crucified in front of his father. Friends, we all have our crosses to carry. Some are tiny, but very painful. Some are so huge they seem impossible to bear. Whether it is big or small, let us count it a privilege to suffer for Jesus' sake.

Second, as Christians we are called upon to exhibit the fruits of our faith, particularly patience, in various stages of life. Whether as children, adults or the elderly, we are to manifest the fruit of patience during hardship and mistreatment. When we are treated unfairly and looked down with contempt or scorn by our own brothers and sisters, and by our own family members, and friends, let us remember our Lord Jesus who endured persecutions similar to ours, and suffered more than anyone else. Moreover, he suffered to save us and suffered unjustly although never having committed any sin himself. He is our example to follow. Let us offer forgiveness to those who return evil despite us being and doing good to them. Let us remember the words of Jesus on the cross, "Father, forgive them for they do not know what they do". True freedom and peace can be obtained only by offering forgiveness to those who do evil in return for good or by returning good for evil.

Third, let us remember that even if we are like sheep gone astray, Jesus our Good Shepherd is waiting to receive those who return to his sheepfold. He says, "Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened and I will give you rest", Matthew (11:28-30). Yes, if you are burdened with the sin of anger and hatred, and are unwilling to obey God's commandments, come to Him, and He is ready to pardon you. He is waiting to take every burden away, to fulfil every trust you confide in Him. Let us entrust to Him the keeping of our hearts, the ordering of our lives, the care of our children, the faith to which He has called us. As our Good Shepherd, He will protect us and guard our souls.

(P) Amen.

God Bless You!

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