Memory of the Poor
The Jews celebrate the beginning of the time of Passover (Pesah).
Reading of the Word of God
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
This is the Gospel of the poor,
liberation for the imprisoned,
sight for the blind,
freedom for the oppressed.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
John 10,1-10
'In all truth I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold through the gate, but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a bandit. He who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the flock; the gatekeeper lets him in, the sheep hear his voice, one by one he calls his own sheep and leads them out. When he has brought out all those that are his, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow because they know his voice. They will never follow a stranger, but will run away from him because they do not recognise the voice of strangers.' Jesus told them this parable but they failed to understand what he was saying to them. So Jesus spoke to them again: In all truth I tell you, I am the gate of the sheepfold. All who have come before me are thieves and bandits, but the sheep took no notice of them. I am the gate. Anyone who enters through me will be safe: such a one will go in and out and will find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it to the full.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
The Son of Man came to serve,
whoever wants to be great
should become servant of all.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
"I am the gate" says Jesus, and the meaning of this expression tells us all about the urgency Jesus feels to offer himself as a passage to life. "I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly." What does have life abundantly mean? We often face the small and narrow dimensions of our lives, and little imagine a greater life: but Jesus came precisely for this so that each of us might have a full, wide, true life, what the Gospel also calls eternal life. It is a life that is received and then is given. And like any gift, we only understand its value if we share it with others. We receive the full and abundant life of Jesus for others. This is precisely why evil wants us scattered and isolated. In loneliness and living only for oneself, there is no room for a full, broad, passionate life. The image of the wandering sheep as sheep without a shepherd is precisely that of men and women who choose to go their own way, following their own instincts, their own habits, no longer listening to anything other than the confused voice of their own thoughts. But if we do not listen to the voice of the shepherd, we get lost, we become easy prey to thieves and robbers. How can we not think of the many preachers of well-being and prosperity who promise happiness without commitment, without sacrifice, without commitment, without sacrifice, without sympathetic concerns, in short, a life without difficulties? Jesus is also an open gate for our life; he brings us out of ourselves, leads us to love, invites us to embark on a journey, on new horizons, on new paths, setting us no boundaries other than those of love.