Almighty ever-living God, lead us to a share in the joys of heaven, so that the humble flock may reach where the brave Shepherd has gone before. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.
First Reading Acts 13:14,43-521
Paul and Barnabas went on from Perga and came to Antioch in Pisidia. On the sabbath day they went into the synagogue and sat down. 43 When the meeting of the synagogue broke up, many Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who spoke to them and urged them to continue in the grace of God. 44 The next sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. 45 But when the Jewish officials saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy; and blaspheming, they contradicted what was spoken by Paul. 46 Then both Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, saying, “It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken first to you. Since you reject it and judge yourselves to be unworthy of eternal life, we are now turning to the Gentiles. 47 For so the Lord has commanded us, saying, ‘I have set you to be a light for the Gentiles, so that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’” 48 When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and praised the word of the Lord; and as many as had been destined for eternal life became believers. 49 Thus the word of the Lord spread throughout the region. 50 But the officials incited the devout women of high standing and the leading men of the city, and stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their region. 51 So they shook the dust off their feet in protest against them, and went to Iconium. 52 And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.
Responsorial Psalm 100:1-2,3,5
R/. We are his people, the sheep of his flock.
Second Reading Rev 7:9,14b-17
After this I, John, looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white, with palm branches in their hands. 14 And one of the elders then said to me, “These are they who have come out of the great ordeal; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15 For this reason they are before the throne of God, and worship him day and night within his temple, and the one who is seated on the throne will shelter them. 16 “They will hunger no more, and thirst no more; the sun will not strike them, nor any scorching heat; 17 for the Lamb at the centre of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of the water of life, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”
Alleluia Jn 10:14
Gospel Jn 10:27-30
Jesus said: 27 “My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 What my Father has given me is greater than all else, and no one can snatch it out of the Father’s hand. 30 The Father and I are one.”
Catena Nova
The mark of Christ’s sheep is their willingness to hear and obey, just as the sign of those who are not his is their disobedience. We take the word “hear” to imply obedience to what has been said. People who hear God are known by him. We are all united to Christ in a mystical relationship because of his incarnation. No one is entirely unknown by God, but to be known in this way is to become his kin. Thus, when Christ says, “I know mine,” he means, “I will receive them, and give them permanent mystical kinship with myself.” It might be said that inasmuch as he has become human, he has made all human beings his kin, since all are members of the same race; we are all united to Christ in a mystical relationship because of his incarnation. Yet those who do not preserve the likeness of his holiness are alienated from him. “My sheep follow me,” says Christ. By a certain God-given grace, believers follow in the footsteps of Christ. No longer subject to the shadows of the law, they obey the commands of Christ, and guided by his words rise through grace to his own dignity, for they are called children of God.(St. Cyril of Alexandria)
The righteous believed that [Christ] would come, just as we believe, that He has already come. Times have changed, faith is the same… One single faith unites those who believed that He would come and those, who believe that He has come. We all see Him at different times coming in by the same gate of faith, that is to say, through Christ… Yes, all who believed in the past, at the time of Abraham, of Isaac, of Jacob, or of Moses or the other patriarchs and prophets, who all announced Christ, were already His sheep. They heard Christ Himself through them – they did not hear a strange voice but His own.(St. Augustine of Hippo)
The sheep find the Lord’s pastures; for anyone who follows him with an undivided heart is nourished in a pasture which is forever green. What are the pastures of these sheep if they are not the deepest joys of the everlasting fresh pastures of paradise? For the pasture of the saints is to see God face-to-face; when the vision of God never fails, the soul receives its fill of the food of life for ever. And so, dear brethren, let us seek these pastures and there join in the joy and the celebrations of so many citizens of Heaven. Let their happiness and rejoicing be an invitation to us. Let our hearts grow warm, brethren, let our faith be rekindled, let our desires for heavenly things grow warm; for to love like this is to be on the way. No misfortune should distract us from this happiness and deep joy; for if anyone is anxious to reach a destination, the roughness of the road will not make him change his mind. The charms of prosperity must not lead us astray; for only a foolish traveler, when he sees pleasant fields on his way, forgets to go on towards his destination.(Pope St. Gregory the Great)
Christ is our shepherd and our pasture. What he has already given us only foreshadows what is to come. With these gifts we can lead others to their good and true shepherd. What we have received we are to share with others who have not yet received it, and we are to so build one another up that all turn more and more wholly to Christ and so to our Heavenly Father.(Luis de Leon)
[As] for the Lamb who stands on Mount Zion with the one hundred and forty-four thousand who bear his Father’s name on their foreheads (14:1-5) and who sing a new song before the throne, the four living things and the elders, it is clear that they must be in heaven, although it does not seem that these, who “have been redeemed from mankind as first fruits for God and the Lamb”, have already died. In fact, they are the same one hundred and forty-four thousand who, earlier, when they were being sealed upon their foreheads (7:1-4), were depicted standing on the earth, threatened by the “angels of the winds”. And why should not these who have been “sealed” be the same company whom, immediately afterward, the seer observes standing “before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white garments and with palms in their hands”? …. All this shows that, in the Book of Revelation, it is quite possible to be both on earth (in the “great tribulation”) and in heaven as well; at least people can be seen to be in heaven, even if they do not know that they are there. The seer may have seen himself as one of the twenty-four ciders without realizing it.(Hans Urs von Balthasar)
The seer of [Revelation] 7.9-17 sees the expected assembly of the last days, every nation, tribe, people and tongue. The multitude in white robes, we learn from the new interpretation of the vision, are those who 'are coming' (note that this is the present tense) out of the Great Tribulation; they are the Christians in Rome, enduring persecution under Nero after the great fire of Rome in July 64 CE.... Tacitus described what happened in Rome. 'Covered with the skins of beasts they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames. These served to illuminate the night when daylight failed' (Annals 15.44.6).... 'They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb', said the elder, and here the symbolism of the visionaries is at its most opaque. When the Lamb took the book, the living creatures and the elders sang a new song, proclaiming that he had made every tribe and tongue and people and nation into a royal priesthood by his blood. ... he multitude in white robes, from 'every nation, tribe, people and tongue', standing before the throne of God and serving day and night in the temple, are that royal priesthood. The blood of the Lamb has made their robes white; in other words, they have been given the white garments of the priests in the sanctuary, the garments of glory, the resurrection body. The blood sprinkled on the Day of Atonement cleansed and consecrated (Lev. 16.19) and so the blood made their robes into garments of priesthood, garments of glory. By their death the martyrs have also made the high priestly sacrifice and are part of the Great Atonement. This is the picture of the millennium kingdom (20.4-6).(Margaret Barker)
Those who follow Christ show themselves the best and most faithful and most enthusiastic followers anyone ever had. Why? It is because Christ never disappoints those who follow him! Think of all the merely human leaders who have badly disappointed those who followed them. They have led people astray in all sorts of ways. That means they haven’t led them to life, let alone to a new life. Christ always nourishes us with what leads to real and full life, and a life that never ends. The only condition is that we accept what Christ gives us and that we learn to seek nothing more or less than this….But if we want to know whether Jesus is truly the leader of the people who has been sent by God to lead them to his New Kingdom, his response is that he is. But then he tells us something that is a bit frightening. If we don’t want what Jesus offers us then we aren’t his sheep. We face a stark choice! Is Jesus himself your nourishment? Do you want God as made present to us in Jesus? Then listen to his voice and no other. If you don’t find what you want in Jesus you have to admit you’re looking for a different shepherd. At Easter time we are shown, again and again, what Jesus really offers. He teaches us to want God more than anyone else and to want to love others as Jesus has. That is what is to give us the strength to walk our path of life, day by day.(Abbot Anscar Vonier)
Homily
Among the more startling examples of hatred toward the previous pope came from none other than Marjorie Taylor Greene who tweeted on the day of Francis' death: “Today there were major shifts in global leaderships. Evil is being defeated by the hand of God” (April 21, 2025). Such things are not uncommon from ex-Catholics with axes to grind. It's the comments from Catholics that really make me wonder — especially the self-styled "traditionalists" like Peter Kwasniewski who posted a YouTube video entitled, "The End of a Pontificate from Hades" (April 22, 2025) and who later wrote on X, "Pope Francis did a comprehensive job, by overseeing a papacy of contradictions, of undermining the authority and credibility of his office" (April 28, 2025). Then there are the converts to Catholicism like Taylor Marshall, a former Episcopal priest, who asked the question, "Will Cardinals Finally Address the Chaos Created by Pope Francis?" (Facebook "Reels").
Enter Pope Leo XIV! While I am still in a state of shock at his election on Thursday, it's nothing like the shock to the crowd I just quoted. The strident and vocal minority, largely in the United States, often aligned with the current administration's policies, who have an outsized influence via their media outlets in print and online, especially their numerous podcasts — they could not be more unhappy.
Which brings me to the Scriptures for today and the rift that would eventually break out between Paul and Barnabas. We see them today working together preaching the gospel. Because of limited success among their co-religionists, they redirected their efforts to Gentiles whowere delighted at [what they] heard. All who were destined for eternal life came to believe, and the word of the Lord continued to spread through the whole region(cf. I). So far so good. But there would come a day when Paul and Barnabas would be at loggerheads --so sharp was their disagreement that they separatedas Luke later puts it (Acts 15:39). All we know for certain is that a relative of Barnabas, John Mark, had run afoul of Paul when he left the duo for unclear reasons (13:13) and when Barnabas wanted John Mark to rejoin him and Paul on another missionary journey, Paul refused to have him. So what had been a united team of evangelists working together successfully was divided in two.
Then there’s the Seer behind the Book of Revelation, John of Patmos, who opened his work with a series of letters addressed to seven churches in Asia Minor. But there’s something puzzling about what he says to the first of them. To the church in Ephesus, he mentionsthose who call themselves apostles but are not, and [how the Ephesians] discovered that they were impostors(cf. 2:2). Now Paul spent several years preaching in Ephesus and a letter of the New Testament bears his name. But Paul himself spoke of having “many opponents” in the city, even saying he fought “with beasts” there (1 Cor 15:32; 16:9).
Now it is at least possible these were Hebrew Christians who insisted on retaining various practices of Judaism in contrast to Paul’s preaching of freedom from the Law of Moses both for Jewish and Gentile Christians. In other words, it's the kind of dissension we see brewing in the first reading from Acts (cf. Margaret Barker;Revelation of Jesus Christ, pp. 93ff.)
So there’s always more to the story, isn’t there? Even today’s short passage from John betrays tensions that existed in the early days of Christianity. When Jesus speaks ofmy sheep whohear my voice, he is addressing his fellow Jews who were hostile to him (cf. G). The episode ends with people ready to stone him for blasphemy. But John’s community was not of the same vintage as those Paul, or later Barnabas, and there were likely notable differences, even hostility between them. The gospel likely reads back into the time of Jesus a current situation. On top of that the letters in the New Testament bearing John’s name attest to a schism in his own communities over differing beliefs about Jesus. In the first of these letters, the author states,They went out from us, but they were not really of our number; if they had been, they would have remained with us. Their desertion shows that none of them was of our number(1 Jn. 2:19)
So there you have the early church -- just one big happy family. So should we be surprised by today’s squabbles, dissensions, and divisions? Not really. Does that mean the voice of the Shepherd cannot be discerned by those who strive to hear his voice? No, but it does mean we might have to strain to hear it over the bleating of the sheep! And there’s a lot of that going on today, made easier by technology.
All of which weakens the credibility of the church's message. Whether hampered by scandal, hypocrisy, strange political alliances and unchristian social agendas, the infighting and polarization within the household of faith itself, pitting believer against believer – in the midst of all this noise, the Shepherd’s voice struggles to be heard.
But in a moment of exquisite liturgical providence, the Church has a new pope on this Good Shepherd Sunday. And the first time we heard his voice, contrary to the ones I quoted earlier, he had this to say about his predecessor: "Let us keep in our ears the weak voice of Pope Francis.…The Pope who blessed Rome, gave his blessing to the entire world that morning of Easter. Allow me to follow up on that blessing. God loves us. God loves everyone. Evil will not prevail."
Intercessions (cf. Joe Milner; The Sunday Website)
For newly-elected Pope Leo XIV, as he assumes the Petrine ministry on behalf of the Universal Church, that God will provide him with the strength and wisdom needed to be a force for peace, for justice, and for the unity of all humanity, modeled on the example of Christ the Good Shepherd.
For the Church: that we may recognize the voice of the Lord in our lives, distinguish it from the many other sounds which demand our time and attention, and follow the invitations of Jesus to a fuller life.
For healing of the divisions in the human family: that God will heal the wounds of racism and ethnic discrimination so that there may be one assembly of people from every land offering praise and worship to God with a common voice.
For all who serve in pastoral ministry: that God will guide them in the service of the community, help them to follow Jesus more closely, and continually renew their strength and energy.
For inspiration: that the Holy Spirit will guide the administration and Congress to resolve the issues around immigration with respect for human dignity and rights and that openness to the Gospel may find new ways to help all who must flee their homes.
For greater care of earth's resources: that God will move hearts to greater awareness of the fragility of the air and freshwater so that they may be preserved for our children and grandchildren.
For peacemakers: that the Holy Spirit will inspire all who are working to end violent conflicts, open avenues for the safe moments of the vulnerable, and help everyone to recognize the dignity of every human life.
Safe in your hand, O God, is the flock you shepherd through Jesus your Son. Lead us always to the living waters where you promise respite and refreshment, that we may be counted among those who know and follow you. We ask this through Jesus Christ, the resurrection and the life, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for ever and ever. Amen. (ICEL; 1998)
Offertory Antiphon
Offertory Hymn (Words: Walter Russel Bowie)
O holy city, seen of John, where Christ, the Lamb, doth reign, within whose foursquare walls shall come no night, nor need, nor pain, and where the tears are wiped from eyes that shall not weep again!
Hark, how from men whose lives are held more cheap than merchandise; from women struggling sore for bread, from little children's cries, there swells the sobbing human plaint that bids thy walls arise!
O shame to us who rest content while lust and greed for gain in street and shop and tenement wring gold from human pain, and bitter lips in blind despair cry, "Christ hath died in vain!"
Give us, O God, the strength to build the city that hath stood too long a dream, whose laws are love, whose ways are brotherhood, and where the sun that shineth is God's grace for human good.
Already in the mind of God that city riseth fair: lo, how its splendor challenges the souls that greatly dare-- yea, bids us seize the whole of life and build its glory there.
Communion Antiphon
Closing Hymn(Isaac Watts)
My Shepherd will supply my need: Jehovah is His Name; In pastures fresh He makes me feed, Beside the living stream. He brings my wandering spirit back When I forsake His ways, And leads me, for His mercy’s sake, In paths of truth and grace.
When I walk through the shades of death Thy presence is my stay; One word of Thy supporting breath Drives all my fears away. Thy hand, in sight of all my foes, Doth still my table spread; My cup with blessings overflows, Thine oil anoints my head.
The sure provisions of my God Attend me all my days; O may Thy house be my abode, And all my work be praise. There would I find a settled rest, While others go and come; No more a stranger, nor a guest, But like a child at home.
