Fourth Sunday of Easter
Jn 10:1-10
April 30, 2023

Computer geeks are far better able to explain this than I am, but I do know that there is a BIG difference between speech recognitionand voice recognition. Speech recognition means that anyone can take my cell phone and ask it to get directions to a Catholic Church…or the closest breakfast buffet after Mass…and it will do it.

But if I were to break down and buy a new Smartphone that’s equipped with voice recognition…it will only do what I ASK it to do. Technology has advanced to the point where electronic devices can be taught to learn the frequency or pitch, accent, and flow that is unique to the way an individual person speaks. In other words, a computer can be trained to respond only to the voice it has been programmed to recognize.

During the first part of this Easter Season, the Gospel passages have been very much about recognition.

In various ways, the Apostles and disciples came to recognize the Risen Christ in their midst. Remember, last week, the couple from the little village of Emmaus recognized “The Guest” sitting at their dinner table when He “broke the bread”? Now, on this Fourth Sunday of the Easter season, appropriately named “Good Shepherd Sunday,” we move beyond just recognizing Christ. With this passage, the Church gives us a sense of how the firsthand witnesses to the Resurrection slowly processed what it all meant.

The Gospel of John is the final account of the earthly life and mission of Jesus Christ. It was written after an entire generation of Jesus’s followers had the opportunity to remember, share, reflect on, discuss, pray about, and pass on to their children all they had seen and heard as they journeyed with The Lord. Unlike the other three Gospels, John is not so much focused on recording a history. Instead, John gives us a collection of the signs and wonders that Jesus did, in many instances, interpreting their meaning. John also reports several images or symbols by which the Lord identified Himself.

This week, we are invited to image and relate to Jesus as the Good Shepherd. What we are given here is a very clear and beautiful description of the loving relationship between Christ and the Church. This passage offers us assurance of the Lord’s protection and guidance. But there’s a warning set within this lesson as well. You might say that we are being reminded there is a BIG difference between speech recognition and voice recognition.

There are a whole lot of thieves and robbers lurking out there, eager to separate us from the fold and lead us into dark and dangerous places. To protect our relationship with the Good Shepherd and remain within the safety and security of His flock, we must be discerning. When our spiritual speech recognition seems to be directing us to follow a course of action…it is imperative to engage our spiritual voice recognition.

Spiritual discernment is very much like voice recognition. It enables us to authenticate the source of a desire or feeling to ensure that it is the Risen Christ leading us. If the frequency or pitch of the voice calling to us is perfect mercy and unconditional love…it is the Good Shepherd. There is no mistaking the Good Shepherd’s accent. Christ speaks with a very definite note of tolerance, acceptance, healing, and forgiveness. It is easy to track the flow of The Lord’s voice. It carries us into a current of uninterrupted PEACE!

Computer geeks are able to explain how to protect against bad guys trying to hack into our electronic devices to steal and destroy. But only prayerful, spiritual discernment can protect against the evil stranger intent on doing us harm. If the voice we hear speaks of perfect mercy and unconditional love… tolerance, acceptance, healing, and forgiveness… it is The Lord who is leading us to a place of PEACE!

Anything less…proceed with extreme caution.