Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Tư Tuần thứ 4 Phục Sinh

Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Tư Tuần thứ 4 Phục Sinh
Trong đoạn Tin Mừng hôm nay  Thánh Gioan cho chúng ta thấy những điểm chính của nhũng bài giảng mà Chúa Giêsu muốn dạy chúng ta trước Ngài bắt đầu bước vào cuộc hành trình với sự thương khó, cái chết và sự  phục sinh của Chúa Giêsu. Trong đó bao gồm phần tóm lược các nhiệm vụ của Ngài và những lời mời gọi đến đức tin. Thứ nhất, ơn gọi đến vói đức tin không phải chỉ là những gì trong thể chất con người của Thiên Chúa được đóng ấn đi kèm trong con người của Chúa Giêsu. Nhưng nó được toả lan ra bên ngoài, vì mục tiêu của họ là Chúa Cha, Đấng đã mạc khải chính mình Ngài trong Chúa Giêsu.  Thứ hai, chính Chúa Giêsu đã thực hiện sứ mệnh của Ngài và Ngài luôn luôn nhận thức rằng ông đại diện cho Cha của Ngài, và do đó, để chiêm ngưỡng Chúa Giêsu trong đức tin là để nhận ra Ngài là người đã tiết lộ cho chúng ta về Chúa Cha. Thứ ba, để tin vào Chúa Giêsu là để được giải thoát  ra khỏi bóng tối, thật vậy, vì nếu như chúng ta không Tin vào Thiên Chúa và chúng ta tự  từ bỏ chính mình và vì tội lỗi sẽ làm chúng ta xa lánh Thiên Chúa. Thứ Tư là khi chúng ta từ chối Chúa Giêsu và Giáo huấn của Ngài, chúng ta sẽ bị lên án chính chúng ta và trở nên xa lạ với Thiên Chúa. Chúa Giêsu chỉ cứu rỗi những người  biết ăn năn và hối cải.
            Qua những sách giáo lý dạy cho thấy rằng Chúa Giêsu đã vâng lời Chúa Cha và hoàn thành nhiệm vụ mà Chúa Cha đã sai khiến. Nếu trong quá khứ, những lời của Thiên Chúa, đã được truyền đạt tới dân Israel bởi ông Môisen,  và ông Môisen là phương tiện mà Chúa bày tỏ chính Ngài cho dân riêng của Ngài, Thì hôm nay Thiên Chúa đã sai con một của Ngài xuống thế với chúng ta trong ngôi Hai nhập thể để nói giáo huấn con người chúng ta.  Tất cả những ai đã chấp nhận Thiên Chúa và đến để được chia sẻ trong sự sống với Chúa Giêsu trong Thiên Chúa Cha. Nếu như đấy chính là Chúa Giêsu, và tất cả những gì Ngài đã làm, thì những điều đấy sẽ được tỏ ra cho  chúng ta thấy ai là Thiên Chúa, và những gì Thiên Chúa đã làm vì Chúa Giêsu đã nói bằng Lời Nói và bằng những hành động để cho chúng ta thấy được Chúa Cha. Để biết Chúa Giêsu là để biết được Chúa Cha ở ngay trong tâm hồn của mỗi con người chúng ta.. lạy Chúa Cha, Xin cho chúng con nhận biết Chúa Giêsu để chúng con có thể cũng nhận biết được Chúa là Thiên Chúa của chúng con.
 
Reflection Wednesday 4^th week of Easter (SG 2016)
In today’s Gospel passage, the writer John provides the key points of Jesus’ teachings before he starts on the account of Jesus’ passion and resurrection. It contains a summary of his mission and a call to faith. 
            Firstly, the call to faith is not merely an attachment to the person of Jesus. It reaches beyond him, for the goal is the Father who reveals Himself in Jesus. Secondly, Jesus himself carries out his mission always in awareness that he represents his Father, and therefore, to contemplate Jesus in faith is to recognize him as the one who reveals the Father. Thirdly, to believe in Jesus is to be liberated from darkness, that is, from the sphere of unbelief, sin and separation from God. Fourthly, to reject Jesus and his message is to condemn oneself and to become alienated from God. Jesus only saves and it is man alone who condemns or judges himself.
            The teachings show that Jesus owes his whole mission and message to the Father. If in the past, the words of God, as communicated by Moses to the people, was the means by which God revealed Himself, through Jesus, God’s very words are spoken to the people. Those who accept him come to share in the life of Jesus and his Father. If this is who Jesus is and what Jesus does, it also reveals who God is, and what God does since Jesus by word and action reveals the Father. To know Jesus is to know Father at the very heart of their being. Father, to know Jesus is to know You.
 
Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Easter
Jesus cried out and said, “Whoever believes in me believes not only in me but also in the one who sent me, and whoever sees me sees the one who sent me.” John 12:44–45
Note that Jesus’ words in the above quoted passage start by stating that “Jesus cried out…” This intentional addition by the Gospel writer adds emphasis to this statement. Jesus didn’t just “say” these words, He “cried out.” For that reason, we should be extra attentive to these words and allow them to speak to us all the more.
This Gospel passage takes place during the week prior to Jesus’ Passion. He entered Jerusalem triumphantly and, then, throughout the week, spoke to various groups of people while the Pharisees plotted against Him. The emotions were tense, and Jesus spoke with greater and greater vigor and clarity. He spoke about His pending death, the unbelief of many, and His oneness with the Father in Heaven. At one point during the week, as Jesus was speaking of His oneness with the Father, the voice of the Father spoke audibly for all to hear. Jesus had just said, “Father, glorify your name.” And then the Father spoke, saying, “I have glorified it and will glorify it again.” Some thought it was thunder and others thought it was an angel. But it was the Father in Heaven.
This context is useful when reflecting upon today’s Gospel. Jesus passionately wants us to know that if we have faith in Him, then we also have faith in the Father, because the Father and He are one. Of course, this teaching on the oneness of God is nothing new to us today—we should all be very familiar with the teaching on the Most Holy Trinity. But in many ways, this teaching on the unity of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit must be seen as new and pondered anew every day.
Imagine Jesus speaking to you, personally, and with great vigor, about His unity with the Father. Consider carefully how deeply He desires that you understand this divine mystery of Their oneness. Allow yourself to sense how much Jesus wants you to understand Who He is in relation to His Father.
Prayerfully understanding the Trinity teaches us much, not only about Who God is but about who we are. We are called to share in the oneness of God by becoming united with Them through love. The early Church Fathers often spoke of our calling to be “divinized,” that is, to share in the divine life of God. And though this is a mystery beyond complete comprehension, it’s a mystery that Jesus deeply desires us to prayerfully ponder.
Reflect, today, upon the passion in the heart of Jesus to reveal to you Who He is in relation to the Father. Be open to a deeper understanding of this divine truth. And as you open yourself to this revelation, allow God to also reveal to you His desire to draw you into Their holy life of unity. This is your calling. This is the reason Jesus came to earth. He came to draw us into the very life of God. Believe it with much passion and conviction.
My passionate Lord, You spoke long ago about Your oneness with the Father in Heaven. You speak again, today, to me, about this glorious truth. Draw me in, dear Lord, not only to the great mystery of Your oneness with the Father but also to the mystery of Your calling to me to share in Your life. I accept this invitation and pray that I become more fully one with You, the Father and the Holy Spirit. Most Holy Trinity, I trust in You.
 
Wednesday 4^th week of Easter 2025
Opening Prayer: Lord God, you offer me the gift of eternal life through your Son. I welcome that gift today and promise to care for it and pray that it flourishes into works of love. Save me from the darkness of sin and death and bestow on me the light of faith and life.
Encountering the Word of God
1. Royal Love: Why should the Church celebrate a yearly feast in honor of the apostle, Saint Matthias? We don’t have any of his words or his apostolic actions recorded in the Bible. What the yearly celebration of his feast calls to mind is how God wants the threefold ministry of episcopal love to continue throughout the centuries until the end of time. Matthias replaced Judas as one of the twelve and was called to be a bishop, an overseer of the people of God. He was called to exercise the royal ministry of love as a king and shepherd, as one who prudently guides his sheep to eternal pastures. According to tradition, Matthias went to modern-day Georgia and ministered on the shores of the Caspian Sea. While only a few are called to be ordained bishops, every Christian has a royal and kingly role. We are all called to participate actively in Christ’s reign and exercise pastoral leadership in our own lives and our respective spheres of influence. We are called to exercise dominion over our own desires and passions and align our actions with the Father’s will, overcoming sin and temptation, and striving for holiness of life.
2. Priestly Love: Matthias was also a priest, called to conform his life to Jesus Christ. Every Christian, through their baptism, is called to be a priest. There are several key priestly actions: offering sacrifice on behalf of God’s people, prayerfully interceding for God’s people, and taking upon themselves the sin of God’s people. Every Christian is called to offer their lives as a pleasing offering to the Father in union with Christ. Every Christian is called to pray for their brothers and sisters and intercede for them. Every Christian is called to do penance for their sins and even for the sins of their brothers and sisters. Priestly love, then, is to “lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”
3. Prophetic and Servant Love: Although we do not have any record of Matthias’ words, we know that he preached the Gospel. He was a New Testament prophet who communicated the Good News of Jesus’ Resurrection to others. While the royal love of a bishop concerns leading and the sacrificial love of a priest concerns offering oneself, the prophetic and servant love of a deacon concerns the service of the Word, the service at the altar, and the service of charity. Now, since every Christian is a king, a priest, and a prophet through their baptism, we can, on this feast of Saint Matthias, ask ourselves the following questions about being prophets: How can I prophetically witness to Christ? How can I prophetically proclaim the Good News? How can I prophetically encourage others to follow Christ? All of this involves sharing the truth about God and humanity, encouraging people to repentance, and proclaiming God’s salvation through words and actions.
Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, through your passion, death, and resurrection, you have gained eternal life for all peoples and enabled them to become children of God. Help me to see how I can bring more people to know you and believe in you so that they may enjoy eternal life in your name.
 
 
Wednesday 4^th week of Easter
Opening Prayer: Good Father, you so loved the world that you gave your only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. Father, thank you for your Son. Thank you for Jesus. 
Encountering Christ:
The Holy Spirit: To cry has many meanings. It means to lament and weep in tears, to call out loudly, to strongly plead, to beg. Jesus was doing all of these. The hour was soon coming when he would be turned over to the authorities to be tortured and crucified, and he knew it. Forces had been aligning against him and increasing in hostility. One of the dangers came from his own friend. From the beginning of John’s Gospel, this moment was prophesied: “He came to what was his own but his own people did not accept him” (John 1:11). Jesus knew many would not accept him and yet begging, pleading, weeping for souls, he cried out, “I came into the world as light, so that everyone who believes in me might not remain in darkness.” How often do we contemplate the awesome reality of how far God goes to draw us to him? This reality can console us when our efforts to catechize our children and evangelize others appear futile. We do not give up. We cannot usually cry out as Jesus did, but we can cry out to Our Father in Jesus’ name and ask for courage and perseverance. “As proof that you are children, God sent the spirit of his Son in our hearts, crying out, ‘Abba, Father!’ So you are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God” (Galatians 4:6).
The Word: Jesus had healed the sick. He had fed the hungry. He had brought the dead back to life. He had preached the Good News: “Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes in the one who sent me has eternal life and will not come to condemnation, but has passed from death to life” (John 5:24). We meditate on these truths in Scripture frequently. We have the Bible, the traditions of the Church, and the writings of saints over more than 2,000 years to strengthen our belief. Through living by the Word, we do not condemn ourselves but hope for the promise of eternal life. This hope is a source of joy for faithful Christians. Padre Pio advises us to “Pray, hope, and don’t worry.”
Our Father: Jesus tells us, “…I did not speak on my own, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and speak. And I know that his commandment is eternal life. So what I say, I say as the Father told me.” In the USCCB document The Mystery of the Eucharist in the Life of the Church, the bishops stated, “The mission of the Lord’s entire life on earth was to glorify the Father by bringing us salvation.” The bishops explained that the Son of God was the Father’s gift, and how we receive this gift determines our path to salvation. “To begin to comprehend the tremendous gift offered by Christ through his Incarnation, death, and Resurrection, that gift which is made present to us in the Eucharist, we must first realize how truly profound is our alienation from the source of all life as a result of sin.” The more we recognize sin for what it is, the more grateful we are for our redemption, accomplished by Ch rist. The Father’s gift of his Son is both the path to salvation fueled by the Eucharist and the remedy for every obstacle that prevents our progress through the sacrament of Reconciliation. 
Conversing with Christ: Lord, I so often become discouraged, believing Satan’s lies that it is up to me to ascend in holiness. I know that the only way is always and only you. I want to receive you as our Father’s gift. I cannot earn your love. I already have it. My response should always be gratitude to the Father and eagerness to take advantage of the sacraments. 

Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Ba Tuần thứ 4 Phục Sinh

Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Ba Tuần thứ 4 Phục Sinh
Chúa Giêsu đã bị những người Do Thái chối bỏ. Họ đã không thể nhận ra Ngài là Đấng Cứu Thế; do đó họ hỏi Ngài một câu hỏi nhớ ngẩn: có phải ông là Đấng Cứu Thế. Câu trả lời của Chúa Giêsu rất đơn giản, Ngài đã chỉ cho họ tới Thiên Chúa Cha, người mà gọi là Cha của Ngài, và tất cả những công trình mà Ngài đã làm là Ngài làm vì danh của Chúa Cha, thậm chí Ngài còn nói với họ rằng Ngài và Chúa Cha là một. Đây là thần bí của Kitô giáo. Đó là trung tâm của Kitô giáo.
            Chúa Giê-su, là một con người hoàn toàn như chúng ta, và đã có thể tại sự kết hợp giữa Ngài với Thiên Chúa Cha là cha của Ngài qua sức mạnh của những lời cầu nguyện. Ngài trải qua những king nghiệm trong sự kết hợp này và đó là chính là nguồn gốc của lời nói và hành động của Ngài. Rút tỉa trong kinh nghiệm của sự kết hợp không thể phá vỡ  giữa Chúa Cha và Chúa Con, chúng ta cũng được mời gọi để được kết họp và  nên một với Thiên Chúa, cho dù chúng ta là giáo dân, tu sĩ hay giáo sĩ, ơn gọi này được dành cho tất cả mọi người chúng ta. Chúng ta có rất nhiều gương sang và ví dụ như : Thánh Têrêsa Avila, Thánh Joan of Arc, Thánh Inhaxiô Loyola và nhiều người khác, những người đã cảm thấy được mời gọi một cách huyền bí để đưộc kết hợp với Thiên Chúa một cách lạ lung, khó hiểu.  Và sự kết hợp này có thể có được chỉ qua việc cầu nguyện và qua sự nhạy cảm với sự thúc đẩy của Chúa Thánh Thần.
            Lạy Chúa Giêsu, xin cho chúng con, cũng như Chúa, cũng biết trau dồi và phát triển đời sống tinh thần của chúng con và ít nhất là có được một cái nhìn thoáng qua về sự kết hợp của chúng con trên trời với Chúa.
 
Reflection Tuesday 4^th week of Easter
Jesus was rejected by the Jews. They were not able to recognize him as the Messiah; therefore they asked him a plain question whether he was the Messiah. Jesus’ reply was very simple, he referred to his Father, to the works that He did in his Father’s name. He even told them that he and the Father are one. This is the mysticism of Christianity. It is the heart of Christianity.
   Jesus, being a fully human being like us, was able to establish his union with his Father through the power of prayer. He experienced this union and it was the source of his words and actions. Learning from this unbreakable union between the Father and the Son, we, too, are called to be one with God. Whether we are lay or religious or cleric, this call is for all of us.
   We have many examples:  St Teresa of Avila, St Joan of Arc, St Ignatius of Loyola and many others, who deeply felt invited to that mystical union with God. This union is possible only through prayer and being sensitive to the promptings of the Holy Spirit.
Lord Jesus, may we, like You, also grow in our spiritual life and have at least a glimpse of our heavenly union with You.
 
Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Easter
Jesus walked about in the temple area on the Portico of Solomon. So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered them, “I told you and you do not believe.”  John 10:24–25
Why is it that these people did not know that Jesus was the Christ? They wanted Jesus to speak “plainly” to them, but Jesus surprises them by saying that He already answered their question but they “do not believe.” This Gospel passage continues the beautiful teaching about Jesus being the Good Shepherd. It’s interesting that these people want Jesus to speak plainly about whether or not He is the Christ, but instead, Jesus speaks plainly about the fact that they do not believe in Him because they are not listening. They have missed what He has said and are left in confusion.
One thing this tells us is that God speaks to us in His own way, not necessarily in the way we would like Him to speak. He speaks a mystical, profound, gentle and hidden language. He reveals His deepest mysteries only to those who have come to learn His language. But to those who do not understand God’s language, confusion sets in. If you ever find yourself confused in life, or confused about the plan God has for you, then perhaps it’s time to examine how carefully you listen to the way God speaks. We could beg God, day and night, to “speak plainly” to us, but He will only speak in the way He has always spoken. And what is that language? On the deepest level, it’s the language of infused prayer.
Prayer, of course, is different than only saying prayers. Prayer is ultimately a relationship of love with God. It’s a communication on the deepest level. Prayer is an act of God within our soul by which God invites us to believe in Him, to follow Him, and to love Him. This invitation is continually offered to us, but too often we fail to hear it because we fail to truly pray.
Much of John’s Gospel, including Chapter Ten from which we are reading today, speaks in a mystical way. It’s not possible to simply read it like a novel and comprehend all that Jesus says with one read. Jesus’ teaching must be heard in your soul, prayerfully, pondered, and heard. This approach will open the ears of your heart to the certitude of the voice of God.
Reflect, today, upon the mysterious ways in which God communicates to you. If you do not understand how He speaks, then that is a good starting point. Spend time with this Gospel, prayerfully pondering it. Meditate upon Jesus’ words, listening for His voice. Learn His language through silent prayer and allow His holy words to draw you to Himself.
My mysterious and hidden Lord, You speak to me day and night and continually reveal Your love to me. Help me to learn to listen to You so that I may grow deep in faith and may truly become Your follower in every way. Jesus, I trust in You.
 
Tuesday 4^th week of Easter 2025
Opening Prayer: Lord God, as I contemplate the work of your Son and the work of the early Christians, I witness the power of faith in your Son, Jesus Christ. Your Son constantly invited people to believe in him, and the disciples of Jesus did the same. You invite me each day to renew and deepen my faith in your Son. I believe, Lord, help my unbelief!
Encountering the Word of God
1. A Bittersweet Feast: The Feast of Dedication was not very old in Jesus’ day. Unlike the Feast of Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles, which had over 1000 years of history, the Feast of Dedication was a relatively new feast in Jesus’ day. It recalled the actions of the Maccabees, who overthrew the Greek Seleucids and reconsecrated the Second Temple in 164 B.C. To this day, the Jewish people continue to celebrate the Feast of Dedication, known more popularly as Hanukkah. Jesus was very different from the Maccabees. The Maccabees were led by Judas “the Hammer,” who violently overthrew Antiochus “Epiphanes” IV. This dynasty of the Maccabees, known as the Hasmonean dynasty, eventually usurped the high priesthood under Jonathan. And so, the Feast of Dedication was somewhat bittersweet. It recalled how the Jewish people resisted the pagan influence of the Gentile Greeks under the leadership of the Hasmoneans, but also how the high priesthood of Israel was eventually usurped by that same family. And so, in Jesus’ day, there was both a false king appointed by the Romans, i.e., Herod the Great, and false high priests who were not descendants of Zadok.
2. The New Temple: The Feast of Dedication looked forward to the fulfillment of Ezekiel’s prophecy about a New Temple. When the people of Judah returned from exile in Babylon and rebuilt the Temple, they were brought to tears when they did not see the glory of the Lord descend and fill the Holy of Holies. And so, in Jesus’ day, they were still waiting for the glory of the Lord to return to the Temple. The presentation of Jesus in the Jerusalem Temple, 40 days after his birth in Bethlehem, was a fulfillment of Ezekiel’s prophecy. The glory of God, incarnate in the baby Jesus, entered into the Temple. But ultimately, Ezekiel’s prophecy was fulfilled in the death and resurrection of Jesus, when the cornerstone of the New Temple, not made with human hands, was laid. We share in Jesus’ death and resurrection through the Sacrament of Baptism. In this way, washed in the river of life, we become the living stones of the New Temple, the mystical Body of Christ.
3. One God, Three Persons: During the Feast of Dedication, Jesus continues his proclamation of the mystery of the Triune God. At his Baptism, we heard the voice of God the Father and witnessed the descent of the Spirit. At the Transfiguration, the voice of the Father was heard, and the Son was enveloped in the cloud of the Spirit. In the Gospel of John, Jesus announces the sending of the gift of the Spirit. In today’s Gospel, Jesus proclaims that he and the Father are not two gods, but one God: “The Father and I are one.” This means that God is undivided and that the Persons of the Trinity are consubstantial. We, as Christians, do not believe in three gods. We believe in one God, who has been revealed to us in the fullness of time as three co-equal divine Persons. God the Father eternally begets the Son and their mutual and eternal love for one another spirates the Holy Spirit, the Love of God. There are hints of the Trinity in the Old Testament, even in the first lines of Genesis. God created the heavens and the earth by speaking his Word as the Spirit hovered over the waters of the abyss. The same Triune God, who created the world from nothing, is at work in our re-creation, which unites us to the life of the Father through the Son and in the Spirit.  
 
Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, I want to boldly proclaim the Gospel in my family, my workplace, and in my community. Enlighten my mind and heart to know how and when to proclaim you as the Son of God and Savior of the world.
 
Tuesday 4^th week of Easter
Opening Prayer: Jesus, reveal the Father to me. I want to draw closer to you. I know only through you am I able to know the father. Lead me, Good Shepherd, to our heavenly home.
Encountering Christ:
It Was Winter: “The feast of the Dedication was taking place in Jerusalem. It was winter.” John’s Gospel is rich in providing signs to direct minds and hearts. Every word has meaning. Winter symbolizes many things: cold, waiting, end, death, a precursor to spring and its new life. In these lines of Scripture, “It was winter” means that the long wait for the Messiah was coming to an end. Death would soon be defeated. The winter of Satan’s reign would soon pass into the spring of Jesus’ Kingdom. Those who were not Jesus’ sheep were there to do battle. Those opposed to Jesus gathered around to debate him and cause confusion among the crowds. 
And Jesus Walked About: “And Jesus walked about in the temple area on the Portico of Solomon.” The Portico of Solomon was on the east side of the Temple and offered protection from the cold winds of the desert, once again referencing winter. It was a feast day, so many Jews from distant lands were arriving and Jesus was “walking about” them. Psalm 87, today’s responsorial psalm, encouraged the dispersed Jews of 6 B.C. who were living in foreign lands to remain children of Zion, God’s people. Jesus was doing the same here. We can imagine Jesus’ walking about looking in the hearts of those who had come from far away, acknowledging their hopes and desires. And none of them realized that their God was looking lovingly upon them first. Where are the areas of waiting in our life? Places of winter cold or death? God is at this moment walking about those places in our souls. Pope Francis offers us this encouragement: “The Word bec ame flesh and dwelt among us. ‘Dwell’ is the verb […] to signify this reality: It expresses a total sharing, a great intimacy. And this is what God wants: He wants to dwell with us; he wants to dwell in us, not to remain distant.”
But You Do Not Believe: “But you do not believe, because you are not among my sheep. My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” How hurt Jesus must have felt to be among his own people and not be recognized. Every person desire to be acknowledged, affirmed, and appreciated for who he or she is. Our usual response is to self-protect by putting on masks to hide our vulnerability. Jesus wanted to be known and loved, but his response was completely different. God who is Love remained vulnerable and open. Jesus, which means “God Saves,” continued to seek his lost sheep. Jesus, who is Emmanuel, continued to dwell among them even when they failed to recognize him. When it feels like a long winter has settled in our souls, we remember that we are not alone. Jesus, the Good Shepherd, is walking about in us. We welcome him. 
Conversing with Christ: Lord, where do I fail to see you? Help me to acknowledge your presence in my life. Help me to see and help me to respond. I want to be found by you, Lord. 
                                              

Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Hai Tuần thứ Tư Phục Sinh

Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Hai Tuần thứ Tư Phục Sinh

Qua bài Tin Mừng hôm nay, chúng ta thấy hình ảnh của Chúa Giêsu qua người chăn chiên lành và đã miêu tả mối quan hệ mật thiết giữa chiên cừu và người chăn vì cả hai đều có kiến thức và sự hiểu biết lẫn nhau.
Tuy nhiên, bài Tin Mừng hôm nay Thánh Gioan muốn truyền đạt nhiều hơn nữa. Vì Chúa Giêsu không phải chỉ là một mục tử tốt lành mà Ngài cũng là cánh cổng. Ngài không phải chỉ hướng dẫn những con chiên của Ngài đến với ơn cứu rỗi, Nhưng Chúa Giêsu cũng còn là đường đưa chúng ta đến với ơn cứu rỗi và sự cứu rỗi chính là Ngài. Những kẻ trộm cắp đến để ăn trộm, ăn cắp, giết người để hủy diệt. Nhưng Chúa Giêsu đến để ban cho con người chúng ta cuộc sống. Chúng ta thường xuyên nhận được cuộc sống khi chúng ta phát triển trong tự do.
Qua bài đọc trong sách Công vụ Tông Đồ mô tả cách mà Thiên Chúa đã truyền cảm hứng cho thánh Phêrô để loan báo cho những người trong Giáo Hội tại Jerusalem một sự tự do nhất định cho các tín hữu mới.
Những người không Do Thái có thể trở thành tín hữu và môn đệ của Chúa Kitô mà không bị những hạn chế của lề luật như chế độ ăn uống của người Do Thái. Đây không phải là một thông điệp dễ dàng để loan báo cho những nhà lãnh đạo, kể cả thánh Phêrô để chấp nhận. Tuy nhiên, thánh Phêrô đã cho chúng ta thấy rõ ra rằng là nếu Thiên Chúa muốn chúc lành và ban tặng cho những ai đã theo sự đổi mới của Chúa Kitô có cùng một Chúa Thánh Linh mà Thiên Chúa đã ban cho các các Tông Đồ của Ngài, và lđã giúp cho thánh Phêrô (và những người kế vị các thánh Tông đồ) biết cách để có thể sống theo như cách của Thiên Chúa.
Lạy Chúa, Chúa là mục tử và là sự cứu rỗi tôi. Trường hợp trong cuộc sống mà chúng con đã được Chúa mời gọi chúng con lớn lên trong sự tự do?
 
Monay 4th Week of Easter
The image of the Good Shepherd portrays an intimate relationship between the sheep and their shepherd. There is a mutual knowledge and familiarity.  Yet the gospel writer wants to convey even more. Jesus is not only the shepherd; He is also the gate. He not only leads the sheep to salvation, Jesus the way to salvation and salvation itself. The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy. Jesus comes to give life and to give life to us in abundance.
            We often receive life when we grow in freedom. The reading from Acts describes how God has inspired Peter to proclaim to the Church leaders in Jerusalem a certain freedom for new believers. People who are not Jewish can become believers and followers of Christ without taking on the restrictions of Jewish dietary laws. This was not an easy message for the leaders, including Peter, to accept. Ultimately, however, Peter points out that if God wants to bless and gift these new followers of Christ with the same Spirit God has given to the leaders themselves, how can Peter (or anyone else) stand in God’s way?
            Lord, You are my shepherd and salvation. Where in my life are You inviting me to grow in freedom?
 
Monday of the Fourth Week of Easter
“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.” John 10:2–4
Do you recognize the voice of the Shepherd? Does He lead you each and every day, guiding you into His holy will? How attentive are you to what He speaks each day? These are some of the most important questions to ponder.
Recognizing God’s voice is something that many people struggle with. There are often many competing “voices” that speak to us each and every day. From the latest news in the headlines, to the opinions of friends and family, to the temptations all around us within the secular world, to our own self-drawn opinions, these “voices” or “ideas” that fill our minds can be hard to sort through. What is from God? And what is from other sources?
Recognizing the voice of God is indeed possible. First of all, there are many general truths that God has already spoken to us. For example, everything contained in the Holy Scriptures is the voice of God. His Word is alive. And when we read the Scriptures, we become more and more familiar with God’s voice.
God also speaks to us through gentle inspirations that result in His peace. For example, when considering a certain decision you may need to make, if you present that decision to our Lord prayerfully and then remain open to whatever He wants of you, oftentimes His answer comes in the form of a deep and certain peace of heart.
Learning to recognize the voice of God in your daily life is accomplished by building an interior habit of listening, recognizing, responding, listening some more, recognizing and responding, etc. The more you hear the voice of God, the more you will recognize His voice in the most subtle of ways, and the more you come to hear the subtleties of His voice, the more you will be able to follow. In the end, this is only accomplished by an ongoing habit of deep and sustaining prayer. Without that, it will be very difficult to recognize the voice of the Shepherd when you need Him the most.
Reflect, today, upon how attentive you are to God in prayer. What does your daily prayer look like? Do you spend time each day listening to the gentle and beautiful voice of our Lord? Do you seek to form a habit by which His voice becomes clearer and clearer? If not, if you do struggle in recognizing His voice, then make the decision to establish a deeper habit of daily prayer so that it is the voice of our loving Lord Who leads you every day.
Jesus, my Good Shepherd, You speak to me each and every day. You are constantly revealing to me Your most holy will for my life. Help me to always recognize Your gentle voice so that I can be led by You through the challenges of life. May my life of prayer become so deep and sustaining that Your voice always echoes within my heart and soul. Jesus, I trust in You.
 
Monday 4th Week of Easter
Opening Prayer: Lord God, you are the Gatekeeper and have entrusted the role of Good Shepherd to your Son, Jesus Christ. Throw open the gates of eternal life to me and help me listen to the voice of the Good Shepherd who calls me by name and leads me to the pastures of eternal life.
Encountering the Word of God
1. Shepherd: In the Gospel, Jesus alludes to himself as the shepherd of the sheep. He is our leader and enters first through the gate, the gate of heaven and eternal life. He criticizes the religious leaders of Israel, who, in his day, were acting like thieves and robbers and not as authentic shepherds. They were taking advantage of their positions for personal gain. Instead of laying down their lives for the flock, for their sheep, they fell into the temptations that this world offers, the temptations of power, possessions, and pleasure. By contrast, Jesus resisted those temptations and sought only to love his sheep and will their good, the good of salvation, by giving his own life for them. He truly is the Good Shepherd who leads his sheep to good pasture – the verdant fields of eternal life – and the water of the Spirit. 
2. Lamb: When we read about shepherds, sheep, and sheepgates in the Gospel of John, we cannot forget that Jesus was earlier identified by John the Baptist as the Lamb of God. Both in the Gospel of John and the Book of Revelation, this is a key identification of Jesus. Jesus is both “Good Shepherd” and “Lamb of God,” just as he is both “faithful and merciful high priest” and “sacrificial victim.” He is mysteriously both the one who offers and the one who is offered. The offering of a lamb harkens back to the Book of Genesis, when Abraham was called to offer his beloved son Isaac as a sacrifice. Abraham trusted that God would provide a lamb, and, in his only-begotten and beloved Son, God did! While the lambs offered in the Temple were ineffective at taking away our sins, Jesus’ one self-offering was effective. As his cousin John proclaimed, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world!” We hear these same words at mass when the Eucharist is held up and the priest proclaims, “Behold the Lamb of God; behold him who takes away the sins of the world. Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb.”
3. Sheepgate: Jesus is not only the Good Shepherd who leads and protects his sheep and lambs; he is not only the Lamb of God sacrificed on the Cross for our sins; he is also the sheepgate. Whoever enters through Jesus the Sheepgate will be saved. Jesus is the way that leads to eternal life. He has opened the gates of heaven, which were locked due to the sin of our first parents. He himself is the gate through whom we enter into divine life. We enter in the Spirit, through the Son, and to the Father. We need to be on guard about false gates, those gates set up by thieves and robbers. The false gates include those set up by many of the Pharisees, who indulged in self-righteousness, loved the praise of men, and were confident in their own works. The true gate, by contrast, is exemplified in Jesus and is one of humility, service, sacrifice, mercy, peace, justice, purity, grace, virtue, and charity.
Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, Good Shepherd, call me by name today. Protect me from evil and lead me to the refreshing water of eternal life. Help me to imitate you as the Good Shepherd and care for those entrusted to me.
 
Monday 4th Week of Easter
Opening Prayer: The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I lack. In green pastures he makes me lie down; to still waters he leads me; he restores my soul. He guides me along right paths for the sake of his name. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff comfort me. You set a table before me in front of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Indeed, goodness and mercy will pursue me all the days of my life; I will dwell in the house of the Lord for endless days.
Encountering Christ:
The Sheepfold: “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.” One definition of a sheepfold is a three-foot stone wall opening up to the sky. It is said a sheep can jump as high as three feet, and anyone trying to get in would have no trouble stepping over that low wall. This type of sheepfold assumes a shepherd who is ever alert and attentive. The Catholic Church is like this type of sheepfold. The sheep have the freedom to jump the wall if they choose, and anyone from the outside can easily enter. We, too, have that freedom. “God willed that man should be left in the hand of his own counsel, so that he might of his own accord seek his creator and freely attain his full and blessed perfection by cleaving to him” (CCC 1743). “The Church proposes. She imposes nothing” (St. John Paul II).
Thieves and Robbers: The Catechism states, “The grace of Christ is not in the slightest way a rival of our freedom when this freedom accords with the sense of the true and good that God has put in the human heart” (1742). Humans are much more intelligent than sheep, but we are wise to look to them for their example of trust. It is said that as long as the sheep are full and feel protected, they are happy to stay in place. Our faith teaches that the “thieves and robbers” that tempt us are the flesh, the world, and the devil. If we believe Jesus is the Son of God, the Good Shepherd, who provides fully for us and protects us from harm, why do we find ourselves mistaking the voices of vice as something good and worth following? 
The Shepherd’s Voice: “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.” With over thirty-thousand Protestant Christian denominations in the world, there are various understandings of who Jesus is. For Catholics, we can trust who Jesus is through Scripture, Tradition, and the Magisterium of the Catholic Church. These three pillars of the Church, like the Good Shepherd, the gatekeeper, and the gate, are Jesus Christ, who promised he would not leave us orphaned (John 14:18). When we doubt, fear, and find ourselves lost through sin, we can trust Jesus, the Good Shepherd, is always alert and attentive and will draw us back to the sheepfold of the Church. We can trust Jesus through his Churc h to provide and protect us as he says, “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.”
Conversing with Christ: Lord, I believe you are the Good Shepherd. I believe you will provide and protect me. I am sorry for all the times I have left your fold to go my own way. True freedom lies in you, God. Thank you for the gift of the Church, where I can always come home and seek reconciliation through the sacraments. 
 
Monday 4th Week of Easter
Opening Prayer: Lord, help me to be convinced to listen to you instead of the “thieves” who often claim they want to help me, because I know that only you want the best for me.
Encountering Christ:
Thieves and Robbers: Jesus warned us that there will be people who try to take shortcuts, lie, cheat, and lead us astray. These voices of the culture and the world can be very convincing because, after all, we’re only sheep. But we are protected from these thieves and robbers as long as we follow the Shepherd. His “gate” is the church, where we live out the Ten Commandments, receive the sacraments, and encounter others on the road to heaven. We are safe “out in the world,” and are free to come and go as long as we stay rooted in the truths and teachings of the Church. 
We Are Led: Our Shepherd wants to lead us safely through this life. Whether we recognize it or not, he’s out front, paving our way, clearing obstacles, and setting us up for ultimate success—a life with him in eternity. All that he requires of us is that we hear his voice, listen to him, and obey. “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the way of sinners, nor sit in company with scoffers. Rather, the law of the Lord is his joy; and on his law he meditates day and night” (Psalm 1:1-2).
Abundant Life: Jesus died on the cross to open for us the gate of heaven. We will enjoy eternal bliss with him one day if we’re faithful. In the meantime, however, Jesus also promises us abundant goodness each day of our life. As his followers, we are able to rejoice in an experience of him in prayer, perceive his presence in the beauty of nature, serve him in our family and neighbors, unite ourselves to him in our sufferings, and so much more. What graces he showers on those who believe! 
Conversing with Christ: Lord, thank you for pointing out my weaknesses and littleness as a sheep. And thank you even more for being my Shepherd. You have provided me with every grace I need to sojourn through this life on my way to heaven. Open my eyes even wider to see you more clearly and appreciate the abundant goodness you send my way each day. 

Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Chúa Nhật Thứ 4 Phục Sinh A

Bài giảng Chúa Nhật IV Mùa Phục Sinh, Năm A

Chúng ta đã quá quen thuộc với hình ảnh Chúa Giêsu là Mục Tử Nhân Lành, đến nỗi đôi khi quên mất rằng đó là một hình ảnh tuyệt vời biết bao khi Con Người lại tự nhận lấy cho chính mình. Và chính vì thế, chúng ta cần phải nhìn lại một chút về lịch sử của những người mục tử.
Vốn xuất thân từ một vùng quê làm nông tại Việt Nam, tôi hiểu rõ người mục tử là ai. Hình ảnh những con chiên và con dê đã gắn liền với cuộc sống thường nhật của chúng ta. Khi sang Hoa Kỳ định cư, chúng ta chỉ còn có thể thấy hình ảnh con chiên và mục tử xuất hiện trên phim ảnh; tất nhiên, đôi khi chúng ta cũng thấy thịt chiên ỏ trừu được dọn trên bàn ăn tối Chúa Nhật. Thế nhưng, tôi vẫn cảm thấy như mình hiểu thấu mọi điều về những người mục tử. Tôi đã từng sống giữa những người mục tử. Và tôi cảm thấy mình yêu mến những người mục tử, những con chiên cùng tất cả những gì gắn liền với hình ảnh ấy. Tất nhiên, tất cả những điều đó đều là nhờ vào Chúa Giêsu.
Khi nghĩ đến một người mục tử, chúng ta thường nghĩ đến rất nhiều điều khác nhau. Tuy nhiên, trong Cựu Ước, khi nhắc đến người mục tử, người ta nghĩ đến một người đàn ông dành trọn cả cuộc đời mình bên đàn chiên: chăm sóc, nuôi dưỡng, yêu thương, chữa lành cho chúng, và trên hết thảy, là bảo vệ chúng khỏi mọi hiểm nguy. Đó chính là hình ảnh nguyên mẫu của những người mục tử thuở xưa.
Một trong những lý do khiến người Do Thái yêu mến hình ảnh người mục tử đến thế đến mức hình ảnh này trở thành một phần trong kho tàng biểu tượng của họ (một từ mà tôi chẳng bao giờ phát âm chuẩn được!) là bởi lẽ hình ảnh ấy đã trở thành một phần trong niềm xác tín của họ rằng chính Thiên Chúa là Mục Tử của họ. Bởi lẽ, trong Cựu Ước, Thiên Chúa đã phán với ngôn sứ Ezekiel rằng: "Ta đã chán ngấy các ngươi những kẻ làm mục tử rồi. Ta sẽ tự mình đón lấy đàn chiên của Ta và chính Ta sẽ chăn dắt chúng; bởi vì các ngươi đã bỏ bê, không quan tâm, không yêu thương, cũng chẳng hề chăm sóc chúng. Vì thế, một ngày kia, Ta sẽ sai đến một người mục tử, và người mục tử ấy chính là Thiên Chúa."
Và thế là, điều đó chẳng hề gây ngạc nhiên cho bất cứ ai; bởi lẽ tổ phụ của dân tộc Do dân tộc được Thiên Chúa tuyển chọn chính là ông Abraham; và dĩ nhiên, ông Abraham vốn là một người mục tử. Con trai ông làm nghề gì? Cũng là một người mục tử. Cháu nội ông làm nghề gì? Cũng lại là một người mục tử. Tất cả những nhân vật lừng danh, những người đặt nền móng cho sự khởi đầu của dân tộc được Thiên Chúa tuyển chọn, các vị lãnh đạo của họ, tất cả đều là những người mục tử. Chính vì thế, hình ảnh này mang một ý nghĩa vô cùng độc đáo và hết sức quan trọng. Nhưng khái niệm về người mục tử lại mang một ý nghĩa mới mẻ khi Thiên Chúa hiện diện trước dân Ngài, và khi Chúa Giê, su thốt lên những lời thánh thiêng này: “Ta chính là Mục tử.” Không phải là *một* mục tử nào đó, cũng không phải là người *sẽ trở thành* mục tử. “Ta chính là Mục tử. Chiên của Ta biết Ta và Ta biết chiên của Ta; Ta ban cho chiên của Ta sự sốngchính sự sống đích thực.”
Tại sao chúng ta lại cần đến một sự trợ giúp đặc biệt như thế?
Lý do thứ hai giải thích tại sao Người Mục tử Nhân lành lại quan trọng đến vậy: bởi vì Ngài luôn hiện diện bên chúng ta và không bao giờ bỏ rơi chiên của mình. Bạn biết đấy, vào thời xưa, khi những người mục tử Do Thái lên đường chăn chiên, trước hết, họ là những người không biết đọc, biết viết. Họ không phải là những người có học thức. Họ thường bị người đời khinh khi, coi thường. Họ thậm chí chưa bao giờ được phép ra làm chứng trước tòa án, vì người ta cho rằng họ không đủ thông minh.
Tệ hơn nữa, họ thường phải đi xa suốt nhiều ngày, đôi khi là hàng tuần liền; bởi lẽ những người mục tử không ở yên trong nhà hay đưa đàn chiên vào những chuồng trại kiên cố, đẹp đẽ. Thay vào đó, họ phải dẫn đàn chiên đi lang thang khắp nơi, tìm đến những vùng đất có cỏ xanh tươi. Vì thế, người mục tử đôi khi phải dẫn đàn chiên đi xa suốt hai, ba, thậm chí bốn tuần lễ mới quay trở về nhà. Bất cứ nơi nào tìm thấy vài tảng đá nằm rải rác, ông sẽ sắp xếp chúng lại để tạo thành một khu vực nhỏ cho đàn chiên một nơi trú ẩn đơn sơ giúp che chắn chúng khỏi thú dữ. Và ông sẽ để lại một "cánh cổng".
Cánh cổng ấy không phải là một tấm cửa sắt nặng nề mà người ta có thể mang vác theo bên mình. Cánh cổng ấy thực chất chỉ là một khoảng trống nằm giữa những tảng đá mà người mục tử đã xếp chồng lên nhau để bao bọc và bảo vệ đàn chiên. Và đó chính là lý do tại sao Chúa Giê, su có thể tuyên bố: “Ta chính là Cánh cổng”; bởi lẽ, cánh cổng ở đây không phải là một vật thể hữu hình, mà chính là lối đi dẫn vào bên trong chuồng chiên. Khi đã bước qua cánh cổng và vào bên trong, đàn chiên cảm thấy thật an toàn, hạnh phúc và mãn nguyện. Và tất nhiên, chúng biết rằng lối đi cánh cổng ấy chỉ rộng chừng năm feet (khoảng 1,5 mét). Và lối vào đó chỉ rộng chừng năm hay sáu feet (khoảng 1,5 đến 1,8 mét); bởi lẽ khi người chăn chiên đã lùa hết đàn vào chuồng bạn hãy hình dung mà xem: lúc ấy không có điện, trời thì đang dần tối, và tất cả chiên đều đã ở bên trong người chăn chiên lo sợ rằng có lẽ sẽ có một hay hai con về muộn. Vì thế, chính ông là người nằm chắn ngang ngay tại lối vào, ngủ ngay tại vị trí của cánh cổng, để những con chiên về muộn có thể khẽ cọ vào người ông mà bước vào; hoặc—điều tuyệt vời hơn cả—là để những loài thú dữ đang chực chờ vồ lấy những con chiên đáng yêu kia sẽ buộc phải bước qua thân xác ông thì mới có thể đột nhập vào chuồng chiên được. Thật là một hành động vô cùng dũng cảm.
Khi David tình nguyện ra trận để đối đầu với Goliath, người ta đã nói với cậu rằng: “Ngươi chỉ là một thiếu niên thôi mà. Ngươi chẳng có giá trị gì cả. Ngươi biết gì mà đòi làm thế? Ngươi hoàn toàn không có chút kinh nghiệm nào.”
Cậu đáp lại: “Không đâu! Tại cổng chuồng chiên, tôi đã từng bảo vệ đàn chiên của mình khỏi nanh vuốt của sư tử, hổ, báo, chó hoang và cả bọn trộm cướp nữa; tôi đã đánh đuổi tất cả bọn chúng đi, và đàn chiên biết rằng chúng luôn được an toàn khi ở bên tôi.” Và điều đó hoàn toàn là sự thật.
Vậy nên, khi Chúa Giêsu phán rằng: “Ta chính là Cánh Cổng,” Ngài muốn nói nhiều hơn thế: “Ta chính là Người Mục Tử Nhân Lành Đấng che chở, chăm sóc, mang lại cảm giác an toàn cho đàn chiên của mình, không bao giờ để mất một con nào, và sẵn sàng hiến dâng cả mạng sống mình vì chúng” điều mà Chúa Giêsu đã thực sự làm. Tất cả những điều này, cùng với hai câu chuyện vừa kể, đều có thể được gói gọn lại trong một ý tưởng cốt lõi: đó là khi Chúa Giêsu—Con Thiên Chúa—đến thế gian, Ngài đến để ban cho chúng ta sự sống, và để bảo vệ chính sự sống mà Thiên Chúa Cha đã ban tặng cho chúng ta.
Để kết thúc bài chia sẻ này, tôi xin đọc một đoạn suy niệm ngắn được trích từ các tác phẩm của Thánh Augustinô. Bạn có biết Thánh Augustinô không? Điều này diễn ra vào thời kỳ Đế chế La Mã sụp đổ chính là lúc vị ấy còn sinh thời và ngài là một nhà thần học vĩ đại. Và đây là những gì ngài nói về những người mục tử, cũng như về tầm quan trọng không chỉ của riêng họ, mà còn của chính chúng ta đối với nhau:
“Thưa anh chị em, nếu anh chị em khao khát có được sự sống một sự sống đích thực hãy làm điều mà các môn đệ tại Emmaus đã làm khi họ mở rộng lòng hiếu khách đón tiếp Người.” Anh chị em còn nhớ chứ? Tuần trước, chúng ta đã nói về người khách lạ cùng đồng hành với hai môn đệ trên đường từ Emmaus trở về. Họ đã mời người khách lạ ấy vào quán trọ, bởi họ lo ngại rằng Người sẽ bỏ đi và màn đêm đang dần buông xuống; lòng họ đã bừng cháy khi Người giải thích Kinh Thánh cho họ nghe, thế nhưng họ vẫn chưa nhận ra Người là ai. Và rồi, khi họ đang ngồi trò chuyện trong quán trọ, Người cầm lấy tấm bánh và bẻ ra. Ngay lập tức, đó trở thành một dấu hiệu vô cùng trọng đại. Việc bẻ bánh ấy tượng trưng cho cái chết của Chúa Giêsu trên thập giá, và nhờ đó, họ đã thấu hiểu được chân lý ấy.
Việc bẻ bánh cũng hàm ý rằng người khách lạ kia không phải là một người xa lạ, mà chính là Chúa Giêsu—Đấng đang phán rằng: “Hãy cầm lấy mà ăn, đây chính là Ta, đây là Mình Ta, hiến dâng vì anh chị em.” “Họ đã mở rộng lòng hiếu khách đón tiếp Người. Chúa vốn định tiếp tục cuộc hành trình của mình, nhưng họ đã níu giữ Người lại. Và thế là, khi hành trình đã đi đến hồi kết, họ thưa với Người rằng: ‘Xin Thầy ở lại với chúng con, vì trời đã xế chiều rồi.’ Và chính trong cử chỉ bẻ bánh ấy, Chúa đã tỏ mình ra cho họ nhận biết. Lòng hiếu khách đã giúp họ tìm lại được những gì mà sự thiếu đức tin trước đó đã đánh mất” bởi lẽ, trước đó họ đã bỏ chạy khỏi Giêrusalem để trở về quê nhà. “Vậy nên”—và đây chính là điểm mấu chốt “nếu anh chị em khao khát nhận ra Đấng Cứu Độ” Đấng đang hiện diện giữa lòng anh chị em, Đấng đang bẻ bánh để ban tặng cho anh chị em—thì anh chị em buộc phải “mở lòng đón tiếp người khách lạ,” y như điều mà các môn đệ xưa kia đã làm. “Hãy tìm kiếm Chúa nơi việc chia sẻ tấm bánh.” Và chính trong việc cùng nhau chia sẻ tấm bánh ấy, anh chị em sẽ tìm thấy được vị Mục Tử Nhân Lành.
 
Homily for 4th Sunday of Easter, Year A
We’re so familiar with the image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd, we forget what a kind of an amazing image it is for the Son of Man to take to himself. And, because of that, we have to look at little bit back into the history of shepherds.
Coming from a Farm in VN, I knew who shepherd was. And the sheep and goats in everyday of our live, When we came to US we can only saw the sheep and shepherd in movies, of course sometime we saw sheep were served for Sunday dinner. And yet I feel like I know all about shepherds. And I’ve been with shepherds. And I feel like I love shepherds and sheep and all that goes with the image. And it’s all because of Jesus, of course.
When we think of a shepherd, we think of many, many things.  But in the Old Testament, if you think of a shepherd, you think of a man who spends his whole life with his sheep, taking care of them, raising them, loving them, healing them and, most of all, protecting them from all harm. And that’s the way the original shepherds were.
One of the reasons that the Jewish people love shepherds so much and they became part of their iconography (I can never pronounce that), they became part of understanding that God Himself was their shepherd, because, in the Old Testament, God says to Ezekiel, He says, “I am tired of you shepherds. I am going to take my own sheep and shepherd them myself because you neglect them, you don’t care for them, you don’t love them, you don’t take care of them, and so, one day, I will send a shepherd and he will be God Himself.”
And so it didn’t surprise anyone, because the founder of the Jewish people, the chosen people of God, was Abraham and, of course, Abraham was a shepherd. And what was his son? A shepherd. And what was his son? A shepherd. And all of the famous people who were the origin of the beginning of the chosen people of God, their leaders were all shepherds. And so it has a very unique and very important meaning.
But the idea of a shepherd comes to a new understanding when God stands before His people and when Jesus says these sacred words: “I am the shepherd.” Not a shepherd, not will become a shepherd. “I am the shepherd. My sheep know me and I know my sheep, and I give my sheep life, life itself.”
Why do we need something like that kind of help?
the second reason why the Good Shepherd is so important: because he is with us and he never leaves his sheep. You know, in the old days, when the Jewish shepherds went out, first of all, they couldn’t read or write. They were not educated men. They were looked down upon. They were never allowed to give witness in a court case because they weren’t smart enough.
Worse than that, they would go out for days and sometimes weeks at a time, because the shepherds didn’t stay at home and go into a nice trim sheepfold. They went wandering where the grass was. And so the shepherd would take them off sometimes two, three, four weeks before returning home. And wherever he found a few stones that were set around, he would make a little sheep area for them, a little protection against the wild animals. And he would leave the gate.
The gate wasn’t made of iron that you carried around. The gate was just an opening among the rocks that he had piled up all around to protect the sheep. And that’s why Jesus can say, “I am the gate,” because the gate isn’t a thing, the gate is an opening into the sheep fold. And the sheep when they’re inside the gate feel secure and feel happy and feel content. And, of course, they know that the gate opening was just about five feet.
And it was only five or six feet because when the shepherd got them all in, you can imagine there’s no electricity and it’s getting dark and all the sheep are in there, and he’s afraid maybe one is going to be late or two is going to be late, so he is the one who lays down in the space and sleeps as the gate so that the late sheep can kind of nudge him and get in or, which is even better, that the wild animals that are very anxious to get these lovely sheep, they would have to walk over his body in order to get in to the sheepfold. Very courageous.
When David volunteered to fight Goliath, they said, “You’re only a teenager. You’re not worth anything. What do you know? You have no experience.”
He says, “No, at the sheep gate, I defended my sheep from lions and tigers and leopards and wild dogs and thieves, and I drove them all away and they knew they were safe with me.” And it was true.
So now when Jesus says, “I am the gate,” he is saying more, “I am the Good Shepherd, the one who defends and takes care of and makes his sheep feel secure, and never loses them and lays his life down for them,” which Jesus does. All of this and the two stories can be bound up into one basic idea: that when Jesus comes, the Son of God, he comes to give us life, to protect the life that God Himself gives us.
To end this, I’ll read a little reflection that comes from the writing of St Augustine. Do you know St Augustine? That’s at the fall of the Roman Empire, at that time that he was alive, and he was a great theologian. And this is what he says about shepherds and about how important not only they are, but how important we are for each other:
“My brothers and sisters, if you wish to have life, real life, do what the disciples at Emmaus did when they offered Him hospitality.” Do you remember, last week, the stranger walking with the two men from Emmaus. The stranger, they invite him into the inn because they were afraid he was going away and the darkness is coming, and their hearts were burning when he explained the scriptures to them, yet they did not know who he was. And then, when they were sitting there talking in the inn, he takes the bread and breaks it. And, right away, that was the great signal. The breaking of the bread meant the death of Jesus on the cross and they understood that he had (inaudible).
It also meant that the stranger was not a stranger, but he was Jesus who was saying, “Take and eat, this is me, this is my body which is given up for you.” “They offered him hospitality. The Lord was set on continuing his journey but they contained him. Now, at the end of their journey they said to him, ‘Stay with us for the day is far spent.’ And the Lord revealed himself in the breaking of the bread. Hospitality restored to them what lack of faith had taken away,” for they ran away from Jerusalem and were going home. “So,” and here’s the point, “if you wish to recognize the Savior,” the one who is among you, the one who breaks bread for you, you must “take in the stranger,” just like the disciples did. “Seek the Lord in the sharing of the bread.” And in sharing the bread with each other, you will find the Good Shepherd.
 
Fourth Sunday of Easter (Year A)
“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.” John 10:4–5
Young children are often frightened by strangers. Infants, for example, form a strong bond with their mothers who feed them, hold them close, talk to them, and lavish love upon them. It often happens that when other family members, such as grandparents or even the father, attempt to hold the child, tears emerge until the child is placed once again in the familiar and safe arms of his or her mother.
An infant’s reaction to strangers can teach us much about today’s Gospel on Jesus, the Good Shepherd. Like an infant, sheep become familiar with the voice and presence of their shepherd. The shepherd lives with the sheep night and day. He calls to them, speaks to them, keeps them safe, and leads them to green pastures and water. If a stranger were to call to them, they would not listen, similar to how an infant reacts to a stranger.
Jesus’ teaching is in response to the criticism He received from the Pharisees after He healed a man born blind. After healing the man, Jesus said, “I came into this world for judgment, so that those who do not see might see, and those who do see might become blind” (John 9:39). When the Pharisees heard Jesus say that, they inquired whether He was suggesting that they were blind, to which Jesus replied, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you are saying, ‘We see,’ so your sin remains” (John 9:41).
An infant’s unfamiliarity with a stranger is instinctive and innocent, yet it teaches us about the deeper spiritual reality Jesus describes. Just as sheep recognize the voice of their shepherd and follow him because they trust in his care, so too does a soul attuned to God respond to His voice. In contrast, the Pharisees, who prided themselves on their religious knowledge, failed to recognize Jesus as the true Shepherd. This failure was not innocent ignorance; it was willful blindness rooted in their rejection of His divine mission. The healed blind man perceived Jesus’ voice with the simplicity of faith, while the Pharisees, claiming to ‘see’ with their own wisdom, remained in sin because they refused to hear and follow the voice of the Good Shepherd.
The Pharisees saw Jesus as a stranger to their religious beliefs and practices. They labeled Him an imposter. Unlike the innocent reaction of an infant or the natural response of sheep, the Pharisees’ unfamiliarity with Jesus was a sin stemming from pride. It was a blindness of their own making that closed their hearts to the comforting and supernaturally familiar voice of God. To recognize Jesus’ voice is to respond to the call of grace, trust in His teachings, and follow into the fullness of life He offers. Only by humbly admitting our need for His guidance can we, like the sheep, allow Him to lead us to green pastures and salvation.
Reflect today on the fact that God calls out to you day and night. Do you recognize His voice? Or do you, like the Pharisees, turn away from Him? Following the Good Shepherd begins with an intimate familiarity with His divine presence in our lives. We must become as familiar with Him as an infant is with its mother or as sheep are with their faithful shepherd. Failure to recognize the Good Shepherd’s voice leaves us lost and unable to care for ourselves. Jesus desires to lead us, care for us, and bring us to the abundant pastures of new life. Become familiar with Him and listen to His voice alone, and like the blind man, you will begin to see in ways you never have before, through the eyes of faith.
Jesus, my Good Shepherd, You call to me day and night, but so often I fail to hear and respond to Your gentle voice. Please free me from blindness caused by my own sin so that I can humbly turn to You and follow Your consoling and familiar voice. Jesus, my Good Shepherd, I trust in You.
 
Fourth Sunday of Easter (Year A) 2026
Opening Prayer: Lord God, divine Shepherd of my soul, I hear your Voice and am comforted. You will lead me and guide me along the right path. The noise of the world cannot fulfill the longing of my heart. In you alone, I will find rest.
Encountering the Word of God
1. Shepherd and Sheepgate: In the Gospel, we are asked to contemplate the image of Jesus as both a shepherd and a sheepgate. The image of the shepherd of the people of Israel recalls the idea of Israel’s king as the shepherd of his nation. David was a shepherd-king (see Psalm 78; Ezekiel 34:22-23). “When Jesus claims to be the Shepherd of Israel in this passage, he is claiming to be the fulfillment of the prophecy of Ezekiel, that a king from the line of David would return to rule Israel one day. But Ezekiel spoke not just of David as Shepherd over Israel, but also of God himself as their Shepherd: ‘I myself will pasture my sheep; I myself will give them rest – oracle of the Lord God’ (Ezekiel 34:15)” (Bergsma, The Word of the Lord: Year A, 148). Jesus also compares himself to a sheep gate: “I am the gate for the sheep … Whoever enters through me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.” Jesus envisions that he will grant us abundant life and that we will flourish under his care and in his pasture.
2. Cut to the Heart in the New Covenant: Peter’s sermon, in the First Reading, cuts his listeners to the heart. This is a sign that the Holy Spirit has convicted their consciences of sin and opened their hearts to believe Peter’s message. This refers back to Moses’ prophecy found in Deuteronomy that one day God would circumcise the heart of his people after bringing them back from exile (Deuteronomy 30:6). And this is what happened in Acts 2, “where Luke has just mentioned that Jerusalem was filled with Israelites from every place in the known world (2:5-11)” (Bergsma, The Word of the Lord: Year A, 142). Circumcision of the flesh was the sign of the Old Covenant. Circumcision of the heart is the sign of the New Covenant. And this circumcision is effected through the Sacrament of Baptism and the reception of the Holy Spirit. The New Covenant was initiated at the Last Supper and fully inaugurated with the outpouring of the Spirit at Pentecost.
3. Sacrificial Lamb and Suffering Shepherd: In the Second Reading, we read from the First Letter of Peter. The letter refers to Jesus as the “shepherd and guardian” (1 Peter 2:9) of our souls. “The image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd was one of the most dearly beloved pictures of Jesus to the first Christians. Long before the crucifix became employed as a Christian symbol, we find catacomb art depicting Jesus as the Good Shepherd” (Bergsma, The Word of the Lord: Year A, 146). Peter does not promote an “easy Christianity.” He speaks about persecution as the normal state of the Christian life and draws from Isaiah 52-53 to make his point. Jesus is both the lamb who is slain and sacrificed and the shepherd who suffers for us in order to heal us. “Jesus is the paradoxical lamb and shepherd, who gathers back to himself the straying sheep. Since he has also been a ‘sheep’ he is sympathetic to our condition” (Bergsma, The Word of the Lord: Year A, 147).
Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, Good Shepherd sent by the Father, protect me from danger with your staff, bring me to the good pasture of the Eucharist, fill my soul with the water of the Spirit, and lead me through the valley of death to the gate of heaven.