DAILY- HOMILY

MAY 4, 2009
MEMORIAL, BLESSED JOSE RUBIO
MONDAY 4TH WEEK OF EASTER – YEAR I

ACTS 11:1-18
The apostles and the brothers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles
also had received the word of God. So when Peter went up to Jerusalem,
the circumcised believers criticized him and said, "You went into the
house of uncircumcised men and ate with them." Peter began and
explained everything to them precisely as it had happened: "I was in
the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. I saw
something like a large sheet being let down from heaven by its four
corners, and it came down to where I was. I looked into it and saw
four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, reptiles, and birds of
the air. Then I heard a voice telling me, `Get up, Peter. Kill and
eat.' "I replied, `Surely not, Lord! Nothing impure or unclean has
ever entered my mouth.' "The voice spoke from heaven a second time,
`Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.' This happened
three times, and then it was all pulled up to heaven again. "Right
then three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea stopped at the
house where I was staying. The Spirit told me to have no hesitation
about going with them. These six brothers also went with me, and we
entered the man's house. He told us how he had seen an angel appear in
his house and say, `Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. He
will bring you a message through which you and all your household will
be saved.' "As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them as he
had come on us at the beginning. Then I remembered what the Lord had
said: `John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the
Holy Spirit.' So if God gave them the same gift as he gave us, who
believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could
oppose God?" When they heard this, they had no further objections and
praised God, saying, "So then, God has granted even the Gentiles
repentance unto life."

JOHN 10:11-18
Jesus said: "I am the good shepherd. A good shepherd lays down his
life for the sheep. A hired man, who is not a shepherd and whose sheep
are not his own, sees a wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs
away, and the wolf catches and scatters them. This is because he works
for pay and has no concern for the sheep. I am the good shepherd, and
I know mine and mine know me, just as the Father knows me and I know
the Father; and I will lay down my life for the sheep. I have other
sheep that do not belong to this fold. These also I must lead, and
they will hear my voice, and there will be one flock, one shepherd.
This is why the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order
to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my
own. I have power to lay it down, and power to take it up again. This
command I have received from my Father."

REFLECTION
It is often easy to reach out to our friends and those with whom we
feel most comfortable. But what about the others? Those who because of
their bad, irritable or unpleasant character challenges us to be more
charitable, more forgiving, and in fact more Christ-like?

Jesus, our Good Shepherd came seeking the lost and the forsaken of the
world. Jesus constantly identified himself with those outside of
accepted society, those disfigured by disease and the poor. He took
their burdens on himself. To know Jesus as our Good Shepherd means
that we must follow his example. We must strive to identify with the
people whom we might want to ignore and instead, share with them the
saving message of the Gospel, first by the witness of our lives, then
by our words. We must be like the first Christians who radiated
enthusiasm and courage in generous devotion to God and neighbor.

In order to proclaim to all our brothers and sisters that they are
loved by God, and are capable of loving, we must show love towards
all. We are all called to overcome all barriers and divisions of race
or ideology. Each of us is to be a sign of God's love in the world, a
love that excludes no one. In the Gospel, Jesus promised to lay down
his life for his sheep. In ever y Eucharistic celebration, Jesus pours
his life into our souls.

Let our prayer today be that each one of us will help to gather into
the fold of Jesus by our Christian living and by our words of
persuasion and encouragement, the sheep in our families and in our
communities who perhaps have strayed away from Jesus for whatever
reason. Then, when we look towards our future, we will see again the
Good Shepherd, leading every one of his sheep towards the heavenly
homeland.
PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the healing and strength of:
- Sophia Gonzalez
- Mylene Lingad
- Shiappee
… for the personal intentions of Margie R. Ponce de Leon
… for the safety of Johnson Cuiting
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
… for the healing and peace of all families

Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers
and for those who need our prayers the most.

Have a good day!

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