Mother's Day and Antioch

My brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church offers us one of the most

beloved and comforting images of Jesus, that of the Good Shepherd.

As the newly elected Pope Leo XIV takes up the mantle of the Vicar of Christ

on earth, he does so in the spirit of the Good Shepherd, who knows his sheep

and lays down his life for them.

In a time marked by both profound spiritual hunger and societal unrest,

Yes, Pope Leo is called to guide the faithful with compassion,

humility, and unwavering truth, just as Christ did.

His leadership is not merely administrative. It is pastoral,

rooted in the mission to protect, nurture, and unite the flock under the love and mercy of God.

Like the good shepherd, he must seek out the lost, tend to the wounded,

and lead all souls toward the green pastures of eternal life.

Now, the image of the good shepherd is an image that speaks straight to the

heart because it tells us that we're known, we're protected, and we're deeply loved.

Jesus says in today's gospel, my sheep hear my voice. I know them and they follow me.

I give them eternal life and they shall never perish.

What a promise. What a shepherd for us.

Today, we also celebrate Mother's Day, and it's no coincidence that this day

falls on Good Shepherd Sunday,

because in so many ways, the love of a mother mirrors the love of the shepherd,

quiet, sacrificial, persistent, and faithful.

Our mothers, and those who have been like mothers to us, are often the ones

who first guided us, protected us, and laid down their lives in love day after day.

So whether your mother is still with you or has gone home to the Lord,

we give thanks today for the gift of her love, a love that so often reflects

the tenderness and strength of God himself.

But to understand the power of Jesus' words, let's step back for a moment and

look at where we're at in the church year.

We're still in the season of Easter, still celebrating the victory of Christ over death,

not just with alleluias and lilies but by allowing the meaning of the resurrection

to truly take root in our lives and today's readings show us what that looks like.

In the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles we find Paul and Barnabas on a mission.

They've come to Antioch and Pisidia and they're preaching the gospel.

They're speaking about Jesus with passion and courage So much so that Luke tells

us almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of God.

But then the mood changes. The crowds bring tension. Some of the Jews become jealous.

And they start contradicting and abusing Paul.

So what do Paul and Barnabas do? They speak boldly and say,

It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first,

but since you reject it, we now turn to the Gentiles." And then they quote the prophet Isaiah,

I have made you a light to the Gentiles,

that you may be an instrument of salvation to the ends of the earth.

Now, this is a powerful moment. It tells us something essential about the heart of the gospel.

God's love is not exclusive. It's not reserved for a few.

It's for everyone, Jew and Gentile, insider and outsider.

This echoes beautifully with what we see in the second reading in the book of Revelation.

John has a vision of heaven. And what does he see?

A great multitude which no one could count from

every nation race people and tongue standing

before the throne of the and before the lamb this my

friends is the church this is what we're meant to be a flock made up of all

peoples gathered by the good shepherd and you know as we waited for the white

smoke if you watched any of that on EWTN or any of the news channels covering

it you saw that. You saw the nations gathering.

And as the bishop said last week, you know, our church has a reason,

a reason, you know, it means something in the world today.

And today, as we reflect on the church as the family of God,

we give special thanks for our own families,

especially our mothers, because so often it's through the care,

wisdom, and sacrifices of mothers that the love of God first becomes real for us.

Through their daily self-giving, many mothers become the first good shepherds

we know, guiding us to the faith, teaching us to love, and leading us toward Christ.

Now, if we belong to this flock, we must carry that same love to others.

We cannot afford to be gatekeepers.

We're called to be inviters, those who open the doors wide and go out to find

the lost, the hurting, the forgotten.

And here's something beautiful in today's first reading, something we could miss.

Even after they're rejected, persecuted, and expelled from the city,

Luke says, the disciples were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit.

Filled with joy after rejection and after suffering.

Why? Because they know who they belong to.

They've heard the voice of the shepherd and they're following him no matter the cost.

This is a key truth of the Christian life.

Joy does not come from approval. It does not come from comfort.

Joy comes from following Jesus.

That brings us back to today's gospel. My sheep hear my voice.

I know them and they follow me.

Let's sit with that for a moment. Jesus doesn't say, I keep track of them or

I recognize them from a distance.

He says, I know them.

This is deep, personal knowledge. He knows our fears. He knows our failures.

He knows our hopes and wounds. and he loves us anyway he says no one can take

them out of my hand that's the security we have in him nothing not sin not suffering

not even death can separate us from his love.

And if we follow him, even through pain, even through rejection,

even through confusion, he will lead us to life.

As Revelation says, the Lamb will shepherd them and lead them to springs of

life-giving water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.

So I ask you today, do you hear his voice? Do you make space in your life to listen?

Do you recognize the voice of the good shepherd in prayer, in scripture,

in the sacraments, in the cry of your neighbor?

And if you do hear him, do you follow?

Following Jesus means more than belief. It means surrender. It means trust.

It means going wherever the shepherd leads, even when we cannot see what lies ahead.

But the reward is eternal. Jesus says, I give them eternal life and they shall never perish.

So brothers and sisters, let us listen for his voice this week.

Let us follow him with our whole hearts and let us rejoice because we're not

alone, we're not forgotten, and we'll never be taken out of his hand.

And if I haven't said it already, as we give thanks for our good shepherd,

let us also give thanks today for the mothers whose voices first taught us how

to listen, whose arms first showed us comfort, and whose love gave us a glimpse of God's own.

And for those who carry grief or longing today, for mothers lost,

for mothers hoped for, or for wounds that run deep, know that the Good Shepherd

sees you, walks with you, and holds you close.

We are his people, the sheep of his flock. Amen.