Dear Parish Family,

Back in Jesus’ time everyone knew about shepherds, their sheep, and how they interacted with each other. The dynamics between them were well known. Not so today. Few of us have watched shepherds tending their sheep. So to understand the full impact of the imagery that Jesus used we need to take a look at a few points. During nights back then shepherds kept their sheep in sheepfolds that were large circles of stones that both penned in the sheep while at the same time protecting them from predatory animals such as wolves. There was a narrow opening to let the sheep in and out. At night the shepherd would spread his bedroll across the base of the opening and would sleep there. Predatory animals could enter the sheepfold only by crossing over the body of the shepherd and so of course they would not.

Additionally there were times when the sheep belonging to different shepherds would get mixed in with each other. Sometimes a common pen was used by many shepherds. But that didn’t pose much of a problem because the sheep of each shepherd recognized their own shepherd’s voice and would follow only him. There was no need for painting colored dyes on the sheep — voice recognition was enough.
We should ask ourselves today: “Whose voice am I following?” Some of us listen to only our own inner voice. Nobody, we tell ourselves, can tell me what to do or what to believe. Others of us listen to the seductive whispers of the world. Still others pay little attention to any call other than their urges, drives, or desires. We all know that many voices call us and we need to be aware of them, where they are coming from, and where they will lead us.
Conscience, literally means “to know with.” Our conscience is our inner voice attuned to truth. Remorse is knowing that we have done something that displeases God and that He is telling us that we can do better. The voice of penance and regret deep within us is inspired by God. Prayer places our soul at the disposal of God. Prayer can bring us to be reflective, to contemplate, to see and hear the actions and whisperings of the Holy Spirit in our lives. When we are reflective we gain insights – we see things and we see people as God wants us to see them. God also speaks to us in the beauty and majesty of creation. Moments when we are filled with awe and wonder over nature’s beauty are moments when God is speaking to us. We ought not to be deaf to what God is sharing with us.

Then there is the example of good people along with their words, their attitudes, and their dispositions. These, too, are ways in which God speaks to us. Our basic dispositions control what we hear and what we do not hear. The awareness that God is constantly reaching out to us is the attitude that we must imbibe from the imagery of the sheep and the shepherd.
“The heart of the Good Shepherd tells us that his love is limitless. It is never exhausted and it never gives up. There we see his infinite and boundless self-giving. There we find the source of that faithful and meek love which sets free and makes others free.” Pope Francis
 

  Fr. Tom Kunnel C.O.