RBWords

     Some scripture scholars have spent a lifetime commenting on just one chapter from the Gospel of John!  Chapter Ten could easily be an example!  The passage above was prominent in an encyclical by St. John Paul II, Ut Unum Sint [That they may be one.]  Once more, I recommend reading the entire chapter in order to get the best view of this one passage.  I would also recommend reading all of Ezekiel 34, which seems to be lurking in the background!!

 

     I grew up in an area where Catholics are a minority.  My mother was Presbyterian and became a Catholic when I was about 13 years old.  My father had five half-sisters who were Protestant, so I had many non-Catholic cousins on both sides of the family.  Although we Catholics were fond (at least in those days) of saying that we belonged to "the one true church," it was not an expression I heard often in my home!!!  We knew as a matter of catechism that non-Catholics could "go to heaven," but we didn't know just how that was arranged!  The passage from the Gospel of John reflects the struggle of the Christian community in understanding how God could reach those who were outside "the fold." 

 

     Jesus "laid down his life" for all of humanity.  The universal element is strongly present in the chapter from Ezekiel that I recommend above.  Pope John Paul's encyclical and the Second Vatican Council documents, Nostra Aetate [relations with non-Christian faiths] and Unitatis redintegratio [on ecumenism] reflect the strong desire to seek out and be one in faith with both non-Catholic Christians and non-Christians alike.  The heady days after the Second Vatican Council seemed so promising, but it was soon discovered that one does not correct a centuries-old division with just good will alone!  All parties must desire it and work for it.  In the meantime, the true shepherd, Christ, keeps calling even when the flock doesn't seem to get along with one another!   AMEN