Congratulations to our Confirmation Candidates!

The most beautiful and meaningful comment on the life and the legacy of our late Holy Father, Pope St. John Paul II, was made by the famous televangelist, Billy Graham. In a TV interview, he said: “He lived like his Master, the Good Shepherd and he died like his Master, the Good Shepherd.”

The fourth Sunday of Easter is called Good Shepherd Sunday. On this day we pray for vocations: priesthood, the      diaconate, and the consecrated life, and the Church reminds us of our call to become good shepherds and good sheep of His Church and the world. Both the Old and New Testaments use the image of a shepherd and his flock to describe the unique relationship of Israel to God and of the Christians to Christ.

We see in the Old Testament, the theme of the good shepherd. Today’s responsorial Psalm 23 speaks explicitly of the Lord as the shepherd who guards, protects, and cares for his sheep. Isaiah 40:11, “Like a shepherd he feeds his flock; in his arms he gathers the lambs, carrying them in his bosom, leading the ewes with care.” In the Book of Numbers 27:15-17, we read Moses’s request to the LORD for a leader “who will be their leader in battle and who will…that the LORD’s community may not be like sheep without a shepherd.”

In today’s gospel of John 10:1-10, Jesus spoke of himself using two images: 1. He is the Good Shepherd who guides his flock and is willing to lay down his life for them. 2. He is the Sheepfold, the gateway by which his sheep enter eternal life. When Jesus said this, people could picture this seen in their minds because they were very familiar with the     shepherd and sheepfold. Jesus is our shepherd, who lays down his life for us. The sheepfold would be a stone enclosure with one gate or one entryway into the sheepfold. So, the shepherds could bring their sheep there for the night and they would lock the gate and then there would be a gatekeeper who would watch over the sheep for the night so that thieves or strangers wouldn't break in and steal the sheep. Jesus says that when he would go in the morning to collect his sheep he would “call out his own sheep by name” and then “lead them out of the sheepfold.”

At the same time, Jesus talks about the hired shepherd and the wicked shepherd. In the Old Testament Ezekiel 34, we see Ezekiel’s prophesy of the wicked shepherd. Ezekiel is talking about the chosen people. He is comparing them to a fold of sheep and led them by shepherds. Jesus is the true shepherd who lays down his life and gives us new life and He is with us. At the Last Supper, Jesus broke the bread and told his disciples, this is My Body, take and eat it. Today, Jesus tells us the same, “This is My Body.”

Today the first reading from Acts 2:14, 33-6-41 is the second part of the homily of Peter on the feast of Pentecost.   Pentecost was life-changing for them. What about us? We are in Eucharistic Revival Years and Maintenance to Mission process. Like Apostles, we are called to gather around the Eucharistic table and sent out to proclaim the Risen Lord.

Bishop James Powers, the shepherd of our Diocese, joins us for Confirmation. Let us welcome him and let us           congratulate our Confirmation Candidates. Our young men and women were preparing for this day, for the reception of the Sacrament of Confirmation. Apostles received the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.

What are the gifts of the Holy Spirit? 1. The wisdom that helps us understand things from God’s point of view;                        2. Understanding which helps us to understand the deeper meaning of supernatural truth; 3. Knowledge helps us to   appreciate the life God has given: we begin to see God’s presence in people, things, and nature and treat them with   proper dignity; 4. Right Judgement or Counsel which helps to make the right decision God would want me to make;           5. Reverence or Piety which helps us to trust God more and the relationship becomes stronger; 6. Courage or Fortitude helps to stand up for what I believe; 7. Fear of the Lord or Awe and Wonder helps to stay on the right path to heaven. Fear of the Lord is because I love God and I want to please Him.

Let us join in praying for our young people who are receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation, may God pour the gift of the Holy Spirit, and so they may come out of the Upper Room and reach out in mission to others. Let us pray that our Confirmands, their sponsors, families, and our entire cluster will be renewed by the power of the Holy Spirit. Congratulations to our Confirmands!