The Sheepfold and the Voice of the Shepherd

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Stone sheepfold John 10:22-30 Recently my boys have been spending a great deal of time outside in the area that will soon be transformed into our garden. They spend endless hours digging in the dirt for worms. They then promptly take those worms and throw them to the chickens. It amazes me how even chickens can learn to recognize sounds or voices. My oldest makes this funny high-pitched sound when he comes out of the house and heads toward the coop. The chickens practically fall over themselves running toward the fence or out of the coop when they hear him making his sound. They know there is food to follow! In Sunday's Gospel Jesus tells us that, "My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me." and "I am the gate for the sheep." Today, again, Jesus mentions that His sheep know His voice and follow Him.  In these few verses we learn that Jesus is both gate and shepherd for the sheep. In those days and even today in some places, a sheepfold w
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God is Love

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Readings for Wednesday of the Twenty-fourth Week of Ordinary Time

St. John tells us twice in his first letter, "God is love." A great meditation is to take this knowledge of God and combine it with the very well known first reading from today. In this reading Saint Paul tells us about love and what love is. I have edited, in part, his writing for this meditation. I hope St. Paul doesn't mind!

Brothers and sisters:
Strive eagerly for the greatest spiritual gifts.

But I shall show you a still more excellent way.

If I speak in human and angelic tongues but do not have God, I am a resounding gong or a clashing cymbal. And if I have the gift of prophecy and comprehend all mysteries and all knowledge; if I have all faith so as to move mountains, but do not have God, I am nothing. If I give away everything I own, and if I hand my body over so that I may boast but do not have God, I gain nothing.

God is patient, God is kind. He is not jealous, God is not pompous, He is not inflated, He is not rude, He does not seek His own interests, He is not quick-tempered, He does not brood over injury, He does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth. He bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. God never fails.

This meditation really comes to light with today's Gospel. Here Jesus faces a damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don't generation. If He does one thing, criticism. If He does the opposite, criticism.

Through all of this Jesus is patient and kind. He is not jealous, pompous, inflated, rude, or seek His own interests. He's not quick tempered nor does He brood over this injury. He bears it all for He is Love incarnate. His love was vindicated by it's children or fruit. His love brought about salvation.

Comments

Elizabeth said…
This is really awesome. I never thought of the reading with God in place of love. It seems as though it should have been obvious now that you filled in all the places where love and it were. It's beautiful. Thank you for this post.
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