Even if it isn’t always clear to us, the life that we are living has a huge impact on all the people around us. The words that we speak, the silences we hold, our actions and our failure to act, send ripples of life or death through the community we are struggling to build. As we stand, wherever we are standing on planet earth, the struggle for community must engage everything that we are. Our sisters and brothers, whose lives are destroyed by the theft of the worlds resources and by the horrific actions of terrorists depend on us being faithful to the Good News. Remember how Pilate stood the Beloved Son of God before His own and placed a terrorist whose name was Beloved Son of God (Bar Abbas) by his side and asked the people to give freedom to one?
In today’s Gospel, Jesus paints the same choice in stark colour. Sadly, there are some whose presence in the community is destructive. They are like ‘thieves’ who steal by craft and deceit. Worst still are the ‘robbers’ who steal with violence. As they move through the community, the light fades a little. They take things away from people, depriving them of resources they need. Thieves and robbers always leave people less than when they found them.
Good leaders, or shepherds, on the other hand, leave people more than when they found them. They can do this because they have realised that the personal and the eternal are one. Everyone is known by their name and labels are disallowed. The voice of the good shepherd resonates within them and within the inner world of the community. What is more true, leaders walk ahead of the community bringing all to green pastures, to places where they can find strength and nourishment.
Good shepherds are artists of relationships. And passing through the ‘gate’ of Jesus they become life givers. Notice how Jesus describes himself as this never-ending flow of life for others. He is the Bread of Life, He is Living Water, He is the True Vine, He is the Resurrection and the Life. Each of these beautiful images speak of life flowing through him and entering others.
In today’s Gospel, this Good Shepherd, this Gate of the Community, states His Mission and Purpose so clearly that we have to hear it, believe it and make it our own. ‘I have come so they may have life and have it to the full,’ (Jn.10,10)
As we consider the moments when we have awakened or enriched the life of another, we can see that this has only happened because we passed through the gate of the heart of Jesus and Moved to build up the life of that sister or brother. I suppose the question remains, when we leave, are those we left more or are they less for our being there?
