I am the Good Shepherd, I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for my sheep. (John 10:11,14-15)
With this theme in our minds, let us go for a walk with our Shepherd.
The Lord is my Shepherd, there is nothing I shall want. Fresh and green are the pastures where he gives me repose. Near restful waters he leads me to revive my drooping spirit. (Psalm 23, Vulgate 22).
All our needs are met by our loving shepherd. We have no need to worry. Just look at the flowers of the field, how beautifully they are clothed! (Matthew 6:28-30). Delicate flowers of the field, petals almost transparent, seemingly edged with the golden kiss of the sun. The bluebells of Scotland, a protected flower, said to be like a little bit of heaven peeping through the earth. We rest in the knowledge of God's bounty. Resting in him and trusting in him, he leads us to the waters, the restful waters which revive our drooping spirit. 'Come all you who are thirsty' (Isaiah 55:1). We are invited to the waters of Holy Baptism. The waters which set the indelible seal on our souls, so that we can live in Christ and he can live in us.
He guides me along the right path, he is true to his name. If I should walk in the valley of darkness, no evil would I fear. You are there with your crook and your staff, with these you give me comfort.
We are guided by the prompting of our moral conscience. 'Deep within his conscience man discovers a law which he has not laid upon himself but which he must obey. Its voice, ever calling him to love and to do what is good and to avoid evil, sounds in his heart at the right moment…for man has in his heart a law inscribed by God…His conscience is man's most secret core and his sanctuary. There he is alone with God whose voice echoes in his depths.' (Catechism of the Catholic Church 1776).
'When he listens to his conscience, the prudent man can hear God speaking' (catechism of the Catholic Church 1777).
'Return to your conscience, question it…turn inward, brethren, and in everything you do, see God as your witness'. (St. Augustine)
In the formation of conscience the Word of God is the light for our path. (Catechism of the Catholic Church 1785).
When we are faced with moral dilemmas in our lives, we are guided by scripture. The Word of God, present among us, Jesus Emmanuel! He is indeed true to his name. Emmanuel means God with us; Jesus means God saves. God is with us to save us! Jesus Emmanuel! Present in the Word, present in the Sacraments. The shepherd's crook and staff remind us of the sacrament of reconciliation, where we are guided by the Word of God to search our conscience and ask forgiveness of our sins. Reconciliation, the sacrament which brings the lost sheep back into the fold.
You have prepared a banquet for me in the sight of my foes. My head you have anointed with oil, my cup is overflowing.
At the Last Supper, on the night he was betrayed, our Saviour instituted the Eucharistic sacrifice of his Body and Blood. This he did in order to perpetuate the sacrifice of the cross throughout the ages until he should come again, and so to entrust to his beloved spouse, the Church, a memorial of his death and resurrection: a sacrament of love, a sign of unity, a bond of charity, a paschal banquet in which Christ is consumed, the mind is filled with grace, and a pledge of future glory is given to us. (Catechism of the Catholic Church 1323).
Thus Yahweh answers Solomon's question "will God really live with human beings on earth?" (1 Kings 8:27). "My name will be there!" Jesus Emmanuel, God is with us to save us.
Surely goodness and kindness shall follow me, all the days of my life. In the Lord's own house shall I dwell for ever and ever.
The fruits of the Spirit are perfections that the Holy Spirit forms in us as the first fruits of eternal glory. The tradition of the Church lists twelve of them: 'charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, chastity.' (Catechism of the Catholic Church 1832)
'do you not know that all of us who have been baptised into Christ Jesus were baptised into his death? We were buried with him therefore by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raisd from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in the newness of life.' (Romans 6:3-4)
'..the blood and water that flowed from the pierced side of the crucified Jesus are types of Baptism and the Eucharist, the sacraments of new life. From then on, it is possible to be born of water and the Spirit in order to enter the Kingdom of God.' (Catechism of the Catholic Church 1225).
There is the whole mystery: he died for you. In him you are redeemed, in him you are saved! (St. Ambrose).
Jesus Emmanuel - God is with us to save us! Amen! Alleluia!
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