By Fr Joachim Robert
Ezekiel 34:11-16
Psalm 22:2-6,8-9
Romans 5:5-11
Luke 15:3-7
Dear friends,
On this Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, we are given the image of the Good Shepherd, or the Shepherd who seeks out the lost and brings that sheep back to the fold.
And as we look at the situations around us, dear friends, our world is so broken, our world is so hurt with wars, with broken relationships, with situations that crumbles, with our economic system and so many other areas. And the world is hurting.
And when we are able to look at the wounds that is around us, we must realise that the heart of Jesus bleeds together with it as well. As much as the heart of Jesus bleeds, Jesus also offers His heart as a medicine for reconciliation. He offers the heart of Jesus for restoring that relationship. If you look at the Heart of Jesus, dear friends, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, it is a deep love that the Father has for us, expressed in the image of Christ, where He goes out to seek out the lost in order to bring them back into the fold.
And I am sure, dear friends, each one of us have had our own lost moments, where we have drifted away, where we have found ourself distant away from God, where we have chosen to harden our hearts rather than allowing the heart of Jesus to transform, mold and shape us. But when we are in a situation where our hearts are hardened, the Lord invites us to look at the Sacred Heart of Jesus. To look at the heart of Jesus, how the love of Jesus consumes us and makes us realise of the deep love that He has for us. And the remedy, dear friends that comes together is to put the Lord as our Shepherd, the Shepherd who leads us back to the fold even though at the expense of leaving the ninety nine and going after the lost one.
And I am sure, dear friends, each one of us will have that experience as well. One of the image that comes to mind is when I was in the seminary where we had so many things to do for the feastday. And one of the memory that came back with so much of situations in the seminary, with so much work to do, with so much of burden, I found consolation coming back in the chapel because we have a huge statue of the Sacred Heart and as I was contemplating on the image of the Sacred Heart, as much as the heart hurts, the heart also shows the love and the mercy of God for us.
And that love and mercy of God, dear friends, is not something to break us but it is something to bring healing and to allow the love of God to consume us. And I am sure, dear friends, many of you in your own houses you may have this image of the Sacred Heart at home. And whenever you are confronted with situations, whenever you are confronted with challenges of life or an argument with a fellow family member or even at your workplace, when in school, you come back to the Heart of Jesus and you ask the Lord to help you and to find a purpose in what these experiences of life has been.
And when we put ourselves before the Heart of Jesus, dear friends, the Lord heals us. He heals our hearts so that we can be able, by His reflection of His love and mercy to the people around us, by the way we show compassion because we are moved with the heart to show love and compassion towards others. When we have the heart that seeks for the one who is lost, when we have the heart that seeks to find comfort for the people who are struggling or grieving, whenever we are able to allow our heart to move with compassion towards the people who are really in need. And doing so, dear friends, you become the reflection of the sacred heart of Jesus to the people around you.
So today as we celebrate this Feast, this Feast which also reminds us of the call of each priest, the call of the priesthood to love like the Heart of Jesus, let us pray and unite all the priests in prayer so that they too may have a Heart like the Good Shepherd to go out and seek out the lost and find healing in this broken world.
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