The fourth Sunday of Easter sets our focus on Jesus, the Good Shepherd. We are also reminded of our duty to pray for vocations to priesthood to carry forward the ministry of Jesus with heart of Jesus the Good Shepherd.  

In today’s gospel from John, Jesus tells us: “I am a good shepherd: the good shepherd is the one who lays down his life for his sheep… I know my own, and my own know me. They listen to my voice…” We learn from this, two crucial lessons. The first, the role and characteristics of a good shepherd. The second is the duty and response of the flock.

The good shepherd knows and takes care of his flock. He is patient, he loves and never harms his flock or sheep. A good shepherd is readily available for his flock. He is ready to make sacrifices for their good. On the other hand, a good flock listens to its shepherd. It obeys his instructions and follows him with trust and confidence. In other words, there must be a good relationship and understanding between a good shepherd and his flock.

The celebration of Christ the Good Shepherd today reminds us that we are shepherds, as well as flocks. This is because each one of us is occupying one leadership position or the other. So, who is a good shepherd, and where can we find one?

Rightly, then, that this Sunday is also the World Day of Prayer for Vocations. I invite you, dear parents, and young people, to pray for more vocations to the priesthood and religious life. We may not be the ones called by God to this kind of vocation, but as Christians, we have the obligation to campaign for more vocations to the priesthood and religious life. For once, let us seriously consider the value of the priesthood in our life. St. John Marie Vianney, the patron saint of all priests said, “Without the priest, the passion and death of our Lord would be of no avail. It is the priest who continues the work of redemption here on earth…What use would be a house filled with gold, where there is no one to open its door? The priest holds the key to the treasures of heaven: it is he who opens the door: he is the steward of the good Lord; the administrator of His goods…Leave a parish for twenty years without a priest and they will end by worshiping the beasts there.” Pope Benedict XVI is perfectly right when he said that without priestly ministry “there would be no Eucharist, no mission, not even the Church.”

There are two steps we have to take. First, let us help in making our people aware of the value and importance of the priesthood and religious life. This is a formidable task, considering the materialistic and egoistic culture we are in now. But it has to be done.

But campaigning for vocations becomes more effective when we take the second step. If Jesus is our Good Shepherd, we must become true members of his flock. Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd, and I know mine, and mine know me” (Jn 10:14). As Good Shepherd, “he walks ahead of them, and the sheep follow him, because they recognize his voice” (Jn 10:4). When we know and follow the Good Shepherd, we become good shepherds ourselves. That is why we know for a fact that priestly vocations usually come from good families where authentic Christian values are taught and lived. May our families be holy families after the example of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph.

I must share two great events that took place in our parish this week. First, sixty-four of our young people received the sacrament of Confirmation on Wednesday, 17 April and forty-nine of our children from PREP classes received the First Holy Communion on Saturday 20 April. As a parish family we congratulate all of them and their parents. We also thank all the teachers and those responsible for preparing them for the reception of these sacraments. May the Lord sow the seed of religious call at least some of them.