Monday of the 4th week of Eastertide
First Reading — Acts 11:1–18
God can grant even the pagans the repentance that leads to life
The apostles and the brothers in Judaea heard that the pagans too had accepted the word of God, and when Peter came up to Jerusalem the Jews criticised him and said, ‘So you have been visiting the uncircumcised and eating with them, have you?’ Peter in reply gave them the details point by point: ‘One day, when I was in the town of Jaffa,’ he began, ‘I fell into a trance as I was praying and had a vision of something like a big sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners. This sheet reached the ground quite close to me. I watched it intently and saw all sorts of animals and wild beasts – everything possible that could walk, crawl or fly. Then I heard a voice that said to me, “Now, Peter; kill and eat!” But I answered: Certainly not, Lord; nothing profane or unclean has ever crossed my lips. And a second time the voice spoke from heaven, “What God has made clean, you have no right to call profane.” This was repeated three times, before the whole of it was drawn up to heaven again.
‘Just at that moment, three men stopped outside the house where we were staying; they had been sent from Caesarea to fetch me, and the Spirit told me to have no hesitation about going back with them. The six brothers here came with me as well, and we entered the man’s house. He told us he had seen an angel standing in his house who said, “Send to Jaffa and fetch Simon known as Peter; he has a message for you that will save you and your entire household.”
‘I had scarcely begun to speak when the Holy Spirit came down on them in the same way as it came on us at the beginning, and I remembered that the Lord had said, “John baptised with water, but you will be baptised with the Holy Spirit.” I realised then that God was giving them the identical thing he gave to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ; and who was I to stand in God’s way?’
This account satisfied them, and they gave glory to God. ‘God,’ they said, ‘can evidently grant even the pagans the repentance that leads to life.’
Responsorial Psalm — Psalm 41(42):2–3, 42:3–4
Like the deer that yearns for running streams,
so my soul is yearning for you, my God.
My soul is thirsting for God, the God of my life;
when can I enter and see the face of God?
O send forth your light and your truth;
let these be my guide.
Let them bring me to your holy mountain,
to the place where you dwell.
And I will come to the altar of God,
the God of my joy.
My redeemer, I will thank you on the harp,
O God, my God.
Gospel — John 10:11–18
The good shepherd is one who lays down his life for his sheep
Jesus said:
‘I am the good shepherd:
the good shepherd is one who lays down his life for his sheep.
The hired man, since he is not the shepherd
and the sheep do not belong to him,
abandons the sheep and runs away
as soon as he sees a wolf coming,
and then the wolf attacks and scatters the sheep;
this is because he is only a hired man
and has no concern for the sheep.
‘I am the good shepherd;
I know my own
and my own know me,
just as the Father knows me
and I know the Father;
and I lay down my life for my sheep.
And there are other sheep I have
that are not of this fold,
and these I have to lead as well.
They too will listen to my voice,
and there will be only one flock,
and one shepherd.
‘The Father loves me,
because I lay down my life
in order to take it up again.
No one takes it from me;
I lay it down of my own free will,
and as it is in my power to lay it down,
so it is in my power to take it up again;
and this is the command I have been given by my Father.’
Reflection
Acts 11 captures a decisive expansion in the life of the Church: the Gospel is not confined to one people, culture, or expectation. Peter’s vision dismantles a long-held boundary, not by argument but by revelation. What God declares clean cannot be restricted by human categories. This moment reflects the universal scope of salvation—God’s will that all are invited into repentance and life (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church 851).
Peter’s response is deeply instructive: “Who was I to stand in God’s way?” This is the posture of true obedience. It acknowledges that grace precedes understanding. The Church does not manufacture inclusion; it recognises and receives what God has already initiated. The Holy Spirit leads, and the Church follows.
The psalm gives voice to the inner dimension of this movement. Beneath every boundary and division is a deeper truth—the human soul thirsts for God. This longing is universal. It is not confined to one group or identity. It is written into the human heart (CCC 27), and it finds its fulfilment not in exclusion but in communion.
In the Gospel, Jesus reveals the heart of that communion. He is the Good Shepherd—not a distant authority, but one who knows, calls, and gives Himself. His leadership is defined by sacrifice: “I lay down my life.” This is not forced; it is freely given. Love, in its fullest form, is self-offering (CCC 609).
Crucially, Jesus speaks of “other sheep” not yet of this fold. This confirms what unfolds in Acts—the mission of Christ is outward, gathering, unifying. The one flock is not formed by narrowing the circle, but by the Shepherd drawing all into relationship with Him. Unity comes through His voice, not human control.
There is a tension we must face. Like Peter before his vision, we can hold assumptions about who belongs, who is “in,” and how God should act. But the Resurrection breaks those limits open. The Spirit moves where He wills (cf. CCC 2003), and often beyond what feels comfortable.
To follow the Good Shepherd is to trust His direction, even when it leads beyond familiar ground. His voice does not divide—it gathers. His life is not taken—it is given. And His mission does not exclude—it reaches further than we expect.
One line to carry today:
Do not stand in the way of God’s grace—follow the Shepherd who gathers all.
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