Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - In St Peter's Basilica on 29 April, the 4th Sunday of Easter, also called Good Shepherd Sunday, the Pope told the 22 deacons of Rome diocese he was about to ordain to the priesthood “The Sacrament of Holy Orders which you are about to receive will enable you to participate in Christ's own mission; you will be called to sow the seed of his Word - the seed of the Kingdom of God -, to dispense God's mercy and to nourish the faithful at the table of his Body and his Blood”. This Sunday was also the Church's World Day of Prayer for Vocations. Concelebrating with the Pope Cardinal Camillo Ruini, Vicar General of His Holiness for the Diocese of Rome, the auxiliary bishops, rectors of seminaries and the parish priests of the deacons to be ordained.
The Holy Father remarked on the “ theological density ” of the Sunday Gospel in which Jesus says he is the Good Shepherd who gives eternal life to his sheep (cfr Jn 10,28). “The image of the shepherd is firmly rooted in the Old Testament and it is dear to Christian tradition” said the Pope underlining that the title "shepherd of Israel" is of unquestionable messianic relevance, since “Jesus is the true Shepherd of Israel… significantly to the term "shepherd" the evangelist adds the adjective kalós "beautiful", which he uses solely when referring to Jesus and his mission… Christ is the real Good Shepherd who gave his life for his sheep - for us - immolating himself on the Cross. He knows his sheep and they know Him, as the Father knows Him and He knows the Father. Rather than merely intellectual knowledge, this is a profound personal relationship; knowledge of the heart, proper to one who loves and is loved; of one who is worthy of trust and who knows he too can trust”.
The Pope said to the deacons he was about to ordain: “may the certainty that Christ never leaves us and that nothing can prevent the achievement of His universal plan for salvation, be for you a source of constant consolation and steadfast hope even in times of difficulty. The Lord's goodness is with you always and it is powerful”. He then reminded the future priests that to be worthy ministers of the Lord it is necessary to nourish oneself “incessantly with the Eucharist, source and summit of Christian life Referring to the First Reading, - "The disciples were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit " (13,52) -, the Pope continued: “Despite misunderstandings and contrast, the apostle of Christ never loses his joy, indeed he is a witness to the joy that comes from being with the Lord, from love for Him and for others”. This year's theme for the World Day of Prayer for Vocations was "Vocations at the service of the Church communion", and during his homily the Pope underlined the importance of prayer “so that those chosen for such a lofty mission may always be accompanied by the prayerful communion of all the faithful” and “attention for vocations and the formation of priests may increase in every parish and Christian community: this starts in families, continues at the seminary and involves all who have at heart the salvation of souls ”. (S.L.) (Agenzia Fides 30/4/2007; righe 36, parole 537)
