Posted on May 9, 2025 View all Gospel Reflection
“The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.”
This Sunday is often referred to as “Good Shepherd Sunday.” The second reading and the Gospel contain a number of references to the Lamb and the Shepherd. This is especially appropriate now in the Easter season. Throughout the Triduum we see the direct references to the Passover feast and how Jesus celebrated the Last Supper with his disciples at the Passover meal. During the Passover, the main course is a lamb. That lamb is prepared in a very specific way as the Lord God had instructed his people when they were in Egypt. One of those references even said “They shall leave none of it until morning, nor break one of its bones.” (Numbers 9:12) When Jesus was on the cross, “they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs,” and then to connect today with Divine Mercy Sunday, John continues in the same sentence “but one soldier thrust his lance into his side, and immediately blood and water flowed out.” (John 19:33) From the side of Jesus burst forth the sacraments of Baptism and the Eucharist.
Jesus on the cross is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. Just as the lamb of Passover was the meal commemorating liberation from slavery in Egypt and the beginning of the journey to the promised land, the Last Supper and Jesus’ death on the cross as the Lamb of God is the meal that we commemorate at each Mass which recalls for us the act by which we were freed from slavery to sin and are thus enabled to journey to our heavenly homeland which God promised to each of us.
But the richness of the Shepherd symbolism does not end with Jesus as the Lamb of God, it also shows us that he cares for us as a shepherd. He desires in his heart to lead us to heaven. He commissioned his disciples to be good shepherds – not like the hired hands who flee at the first sign of danger or risk. Jesus goes in search of us if we are lost and crying out for help. Jesus leads us to green pastures where we can be refreshed and nourished. Jesus restores our soul to its right-ordered condition. Jesus, through the work of the Church, has named shepherds to guide us. These shepherds are the Bishops and the priests who help pastor and guide the flock of each local church.
As we contemplate the image of the Good Shepherd this week, let us ask ourselves if we give thanks to the Lord for his great gift to us. Let us reflect on whether we are truly listening to His voice so that it can lead us. Let us stay close to the Lord for he is the source of eternal life.
