"In and through Jesus we come to know God as a powerless God, who becomes dependent on us. But it is precisely in this powerlessness that God’s power reveals itself. This is not the power that controls, dictates, and commands. It is the power that heals, reconciles, and unites. It is the power of the Spirit. When Jesus appeared people wanted to be close to him and touch him because “power came out of him” (Luke 6:19).

It is this power of the divine Spirit that Jesus wants to give us. The Spirit indeed empowers us and allows us to be healing presences. When we are filled with that Spirit, we cannot be other than healers." Henri Nouwen

The coming of the Spirit upon Jesus, the coming of the Spirit upon us is not an after thought. It is part of the revealed plan of God that all of us be baptized in the Holy Spirit, be filled with the Holy Spirit. He comes not only to sanctify us, which we need, but also to anoint and empower us for the proclamation of the Good News of our Salvation through Jesus. He comes to heal and restore us so that in turn we may be instrument of healing for others, both spiritual and physical.  Pray for the release of that gift in a fresh new way.

 "Breath in me, O Holy Spirit, that my thoughts may all be holy. Act in me, O Holy Spirit, that my work, too, may be holy. Draw my heart, O Holy Spirit, that I love but what is holy. Strengthen me, O Holy Spirit, to defend all that is holy. Guard me, then, O Holy Spirit, that I always may be holy."  - St. Augustine 

We called him the Holy Spirit because one of his essential works in those who have been baptized is to sanctify them, to make them and keep them holy. When we were baptized, we became the adopted sons and daughters of God. God's own divine life pulsated within us. Throughout our lives, the Spirit sustains us in this life of God in different ways. He is working within us now, sustaining us in God's life. Just as we may not be conscious of the maintenance of our human life, we may not be conscious of the continuation of our shared life with God. It is the Holy  Spirit who accomplishes this in us. Give thanks to the Spirit for his personal care of us!  Do nothing to grieve the Holy Spirit, so that the life of God may remain in us. The above prayer may help to keep us attentive.

Homily Fourth Sunday of Easter Year A

Reading 1: A central mystery of our faith is that Jesus, who was crucified, has risen and he is both Lord and Christ. Calling him Lord, Peter acknowledges that Jesus is true God and true Man. Calling him Christ, Peter proclaims that Jesus is the promised Messiah.

When the people heard this proclamation, their hearts were moved by the Holy Spirit to seek guidance as to their response. What Peter tells them is what he and the other ten disciples did during the ten days following Jesus’ Ascension. They repented of their own sins. They acknowledge Jesus as their Lord and Savior and they waited for the coming of the Holy Spirit.

Basically, what Peter taught is what we believe. Faith in Jesus and repentance brings the forgiveness of sins, new life and the gift of the Holy Spirit.

As we prepare for the Solemnity of Pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit, we too can receive a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Repentance of our sins, renewed commitment of our lives to the Lordship of Jesus and an expectation of a fresh infilling of the Spirit are the steps that are needed. If that happened to the three thousand hearers, can it not happen to us today?

Gospel: Jesus is our true Shepherd. His own knows his voice and follow him as he leads them. He alone gives us life abundantly. This truth of the Gospel is still valid in spite of the circumstances of life.

The Church at different times in its 2000 years of history has gone through many crises and times of darkness and trials. These were times of purification for the Church. And the Church emerged stronger each time. Why? Jesus is the Lord and the Christ. Jesus forgives sins, when repentance is present. Jesus is the Shepherd and guide of our souls. He is still in charge. He has sent the Holy Spirit to be with the Church until the end of time. The gates of hell shall not prevail.

Whom do we follow? Is Jesus the Lord and Messiah in fact of our lives? Are we in tune with his grace and the sound of his voice? Do we follow the lead of the Spirit so that we may know when Jesus is speaking to us and when something or someone other than Jesus is drawing us away? How do we know? Do we take time to listen? Do we recommit our lives every day? Do we vigorously try to avoid sin? Do we act on the inner voice of God within us?

Reading 2: Jesus is acknowledged as one who suffered, took upon himself our sins and through his suffering and death freed us from sin. As a result, he brought us into a life of righteousness. We have been healed. For all he has done, we, in turn, acknowledge and submit to him as the shepherd and guide of our souls.

We too suffer. But how do we embrace our suffering? Do we share our suffering with that of Jesus? To do so, gives meaning and purpose to our suffering. This is what Paul means when he says: “Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking^* in the afflictions of Christ on behalf of his body, which is the church” (Colossians 1:24). But not to do so, renders our sufferings, in a sense, useless.

Either we enter into and embrace the mystery of Jesus as Lord, Messiah, Shepherd and guide or we remain isolated in our own world. The choice is ours.

 Have we ever resisted the move of the Holy Spirit? Have we ever felt like Peter as he experienced the transfigured glory of Jesus on Mt. Tabor? Have we ever felt: "Lord, it is good to be here. Let us stay in this moment of joy"? With the Spirit there is no standing still. He urges us on to the next moment where we will experience the plan of God. As Jesus urged Peter to go down the mountain high to the cross and resurrection, so the Spirit urges us to the next cross and resurrection in our life. It is doing the will of God in the moment that we will in time see the plan of God in our life. This is the role of the Spirit, not to allow complacency or inertia to prevent us from doing the will of God in this moment of our life. He tells us "There is more."

 Fourth Sunday of Easter Gospel  A

“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 he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.”

.

In the Old Testament, God is described as a Shepherd and the people were the sheep of his flock. (Ps 23)  Later on Exzekiel the Prophet likened God to a Shepherd who was displeased with those who were not shepherding his people but using them for their benefit. God revealed that he would remove the wicked shepherds and pasture his people himself. (Ez 34) This happens through the person of Jesus, who here likens himself to the Good Shepherd who will properly care for the flock of God.

· God knows us by name and calls us to follow him. Does that truth make us feel special? Spend some time reflecting on this revelation.

 “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 recognize the voice of strangers." 

· It is a known fact that sheep are able to distinguish between the voice of the Shepherd and that of a stranger Do we know how to distinguish the voice of God from that of another? 

Although Jesus used this figure of speech, they did not realize what he was trying to tell them. 

· Shepherding was a common occupation in Palestine at the time. Even so, the people hearing Jesus could not easily connect to the message he was giving them. Why?

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. 

· Jesus changes the metaphor with the intention of making clearer his message. He equates himself to the gate.  When the Shepherd takes his sheep to pasture, spending nights with them away from their normal, secure enclosure, he would sleep in front of the enclosure to block it from any intruders. He is ready to defend his sheep with his life if necessary.

· “I came that they may have life and have it more abundantly.” There is no salvation outside of Jesus Christ. In him is the fullness of life. What does that say to you?

· If I want to experience this abundant life, what would Jesus want me to do? Do I manifest this abundant life in my words and actions?

· What in this reading touched your life in a very special way? How have I experienced Jesus personally speaking to me and caring for me? How have I responded?

 “When we pray, it is because the Holy Spirit inspires prayer in our heart. When we break the cycle of our self-centerdness, and move beyond ourselves and go out to encounter others, to listen to them and help them, it is the Spirit of God who impels us to do so. When we find within a hitherto unknown ability to forgive, to love someone who doesn’t love us in return, it is the Spirit who has taken hold of us. When we move beyond mere self-serving words and turn to our brothers and sisters with that tenderness which warms the heart, we have indeed been touched by the Holy Spirit.” Pope Francis

The move of the Spirit within us is like the wind. We hear its sound but do not know where it comes from or goes. So it is with the Holy Spirit. Like a gentle breeze he comes and goes. The more we are attuned to his movement, the more we are able to respond to the grace of the moment he gives us. It is good for us to pray regularly, "Come, Holy Spirit, come", so that our hearts are open to his workings within us. Sometimes it is in hindsight that we realize the move of the Spirit. But it was our openness to his workings that enable him to work through us. The Spirit worked wonders through the various saints of the past not because they were saints, but because they were open.