Fourth Sunday of Easter April 21, 2024 – Good Shepherd Sunday
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April 19, 2024(John 10:11-13) Ego sum pastor bonus. Bonus pastor animam suam dat pro ovibus suis. Mercenarius autem, et qui non est pastor, cujus non sunt oves propriae, videt lupum venientem, et dimittit oves et fugit: et lupus rapit, et dispergit oves: mercenarius autem fugit, quia mercenarius est, et non pertinent ad eum de ovibus. I am the good Shepherd. The good Shepherd giveth His life for His sheep. But the hireling, and he that is not the Shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth and scattereth the sheep: and the hireling fleeth, because he is a hireling and he hath no care for the sheep.
My dear brothers and sisters in Christ:
This Fourth Sunday of Easter we again meet Christ, the Good Shepherd. The comparison of the Lord to a good shepherd comforts and encourages us. Jesus, the Good Shepherd, will never abandon his sheep. We easily understand that sheep refer to our souls and shepherd to Jesus Christ. The mercenaries or hirelings are those who mislead and deceive. The wolf is the devil, who in league with the mercenaries, the hirelings, devastates souls and the Church from within and from without (ad intra et ad extra.) What are we to do?
Jesus will never let us down come what may. We must always listen to His voice and obey Him. Jesus is our sure and certain guide. He has imparted to His Church the certitude of Faith. The hirelings and wolves remain, but they need not succeed. At another point Jesus warns us about false shepherds that mislead the sheep, like wolves clothed like shepherds (Matthew 7:15). That is why Jesus calls each soul to stand firm by steadfastly embracing the Way of the Cross. He suffered, died, and rose, for each soul; therefore, He calls out to us to follow the same path that unites heaven with earth and earth with heaven until we attain eternal life.
We must pray that the Lord will raise up and sustain pastors strong in character and holiness. It is not enough to be pious. We need brave, courageous men to lead the Church in our day. Our pope, bishops, and priests are called to be good pastors, good shepherds, to gather in and protect all souls. After His Resurrection, Jesus gave St. Peter a chance to undo his threefold denial, when He asked him if he loved Him. After the threefold affirmative response of St. Peter, Jesus said to him threefold: “Feed my sheep!”
We must also encourage and build up strong Catholic families, where parents shepherd their children to Christ the Good Shepherd. In fact, all Catholics have the sacred vocation to be good shepherds of souls. We must work together in Christ. This is not a time for cowards and weaklings.
Yours in Our Lord and Our Lady,
Fr. Mark G. Mazza, Pastor
