Let us not be false shepherds

Fourth Sunday of Easter – A – May 3, 2020

It’s only human nature to feel defensive when someone calls you out for something you did wrong. When this happens to me, I am so quick to explain myself and why I did what I did in an attempt to make my misdeed look less terrible, maybe even reasonable considering the circumstances. At my worst, I might try to find a scapegoat to take on the blame that is rightfully mine.

But any good leader knows that when you make a mistake, for whatever reason, you humbly accept your responsibility and you do whatever you can to repair the injury you caused. That’s what the people in today’s first reading did when Peter called them out for their rejection of Jesus. They did not fight back or deny it. They simply asked what they could do to make it right.

Whether or not we hold an official role of leadership in our church communities, we are to follow the example of Christ, who is both the Good Shepherd and the lamb who did not cry out. Though blameless, Jesus returned no insult and made no threat. He simply did whatever was needed to make things right again.

Let us not be false shepherds. But let us speak and act with the voice and heart of the True Shepherd, whose wounds have healed us.