Dear Parishioners,
Don’t Be Fooled
In this week’s gospel, Jesus is giving us a warning. No one knows more about the temptations of this life or the many ways good people can be misled by false words, than Jesus. Jesus has seen and experienced it all. He wants His disciples to have the ability to discern truth from lies.
The role and duties of a shepherd are very familiar to the people of the time. Everyone knows that a shepherd’s life is one of total commitment and dedication to the care of his sheep. Jesus’s life not only exemplifies the life of the shepherd — He takes it one step further. Jesus’s love and commitment to His flock (His people) required Him to lay down His life for them. There was no hesitation whatsoever in His willingness to do it.
Jesus knew others would come and try to persuade His people to follow them — people who care only about themselves. Jesus’s suffering death was the ultimate testimony — the final proof that His is the voice of truth. There is no other.
When temptations come our way, we need to listen to the voice that shouts from the crucifix. There is no mistaking unconditional love. It is the only thing we can truly rely on in life. Jesus’s cross paves the way to the only gate we will ever need to pass through. His cross is the entry to the gate of salvation and true happiness.
In the last line of the gospel, Jesus acknowledges that our journey through life may not always be easy. But His promise of what is to come is what makes life worth the fight:
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it to the full.”
Sincerely in Christ,
Father Lito