Not a thousand times, no. We don’t ring the dying bell; We ring the morning bell. Though the tempter first, second, and third times break your will, to you, the dying bell does not ring; it rings for the hope of heaven. It rings for the living, for the joy of salvation; it tolls for the coming of life. Even the believers of this age will not lose their salvation. Our Father, who art in heaven. It is Thy will that we may live today and carry the Gospel to the world’s people. It is your will that we may be able to decide freely and say: we believe. And that You may be able to tell us. Blessed be my Father, take the kingdom that has been prepared for you from the beginning of the world.
I have been permitted to leave. Farewell, my friends. I am going to meet the Lord. Here I return the key to my door. The invitation has come, and I am ready to leave. A terrible black night is approaching. It cannot be driven away. It will come upon you. It will encircle you. Would you like to know the secret of death? But how can you find it if you don’t look for it in the heart of life? Life and death are one, as the river and the sea are one. In the depth of your hopes lies your knowledge of the other world. I have come to the edge of your eternity, in which nothing can be lost. Here in the gates of darkness stands death. The mother of graves, the king of times. What are you before me, man? The air that flies against the cliffs, a bubble on the sea waves, what is of your waiting for tomorrow? You would like to catch Sunbeams in your hand and always have them empty. You’re setting the happiness table when my chariot pulls up at your door. I’ll take you whenever I want. A child from his mother’s arms, all of you, a strong man from his path. What a man thou art before me. In the end, of the beginning, you’re just about to live. Your hands lie dead in the coffin; your eyes turn to dust. Even the rosy cheeks, the earth will take. Nothing is yours anymore. Thou shalt not call out in joy to the morning silence; thou shalt not answer when they seek thee. Who would look for you? What are ye before me who stand over the grave? We cling to the promises of God. God is not the God of the dead but the living. He who believes in me shall live, though he dies.

When meeting young children and their parents, kind words are often spoken: All after Daddy! All Mommy’s! Children grow up. When a son or daughter is doing well, it is adorable when sons say; You’re all, Daddy! And the son is proud. Likewise with the daughter because they all get the credit for it. They try. They are working on themselves.

Jesus says to Philip: “Whoever sees me sees the Father” (Jn 14:9).

Jesus not only gives a beautiful lesson to Philip but to us today. Whoever knows Jesus knows the heavenly Father. These words are not about a kind of sensory tactile knowledge. All the apostles knew that God is pure spirit, that Jesus only took the form of a man out of love for us. Instead, this is about a knowledge of faith that wants to reveal itself even more to those who see with their eyes. The religion of the apostles had to grow too. Philip, too, would later mature in the idea that in Jesus, we also see the Father. But first had to come Jesus’ crucifixion, resurrection, and the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. Only then is the mystery of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, revealed.

If Jesus had not taken the form of a man, we would not know about this beautiful relationship between the Father and the Son, this incredible bond of love of the third divine person, the Holy Spirit. Jesus points to His Father in all His actions. He forms a unity with him that is not divided, even though he took upon himself the form of a man for 33 years out of love for us. In this, we see the unique relationship of the Father and the Son when the Son not only lives but is truly unbroken and united to the Father. We also see this in the address He teaches His apostles when He calls the Father a Father to us. Thus, we are taught that we are all sons and daughters of the heavenly Father. Therefore, an excellent relationship of trust and love is established between the Father and us…

This interpretation of the relationship of Jesus to the Father, not only his own but also ours, should touch us, fill us, and enrich us.
Therefore, it is also our duty as Christians to enrich the world with the great values of love. The teachings of Christ have value precisely because they speak of love. Not an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, but thou shalt love God and thy neighbor as thyself. If only we understood this from the teachings of Christ, it would already be an outstanding contribution to the world even today. We would resemble our Creator. In the Old Testament in Genesis, which we call Genesis, we read that we are made in the image of God. That means we are created in the most beautiful way God has recognized to make in His wisdom. Man is a perfect creature, a work of God’s love. If it were not so, would Jesus have taken on the form of man?

Yet we believers often devalue that likeness. By what? Sin! The Christian who bears the name after Christ should strive in his life to model the image of Christ in us to those who have not believed or have not received such knowledge of Christ. John the Apostle wrote: God is love. Thus the Christian, the confessor of God, should not only preach love but also live it. It isn’t easy. Today, we should ask for strength from the Lord Jesus to learn love from him so that the world can learn it from us.

Do we resemble Jesus? Do they see Jesus in us? Are we not making a caricature of Jesus with our lives? When a son or daughter reaches his or her father or mother in a good way, it comforts the parents. We can equate it that way in the spiritual realm as well. Let us do all we can to be like our brother, Jesus Christ, like God, in whose image we were created. Amen.

Today’s Gospel is not a legend. At the farewell supper with the disciples, after Judas has gone to betray Jesus, Jesus says to the apostles, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another. That you also love one another as I have loved you. By this, all men will know that you are my disciples if you love one another” (Jn 13:34-35).
The Easter season reminds us of the severe demands that Jesus expects of us. Among them is the command to love one another. Before His ascension, the Lord Jesus gives His apostles knowledge about how they are to act at that time, and He expresses it in words, “That you also love one another, just as I have loved you” (Jn 13:34). Jesus calls these words “the new commandment.” It means that the disciples are to continue in the style of Jesus’ life and activity. It is a challenging ideal to which we are all called by Jesus. These words of Jesus cannot be realized unless one truly puts oneself into the game of life. The identifying sign is simple but challenging. But those who have known the love of the Lord Jesus in their skin, in their own lives, who live out of this love, who accept it, who understand it, have understood these words of Jesus. Whoever has understood these words and has taken them as his own can more efficiently and more than anyone else implement them in his life.

St. John the Apostle wrote: “I have seen new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth have passed away, and the sea is no more. And I saw a holy city coming down out of heaven from God, the New Jerusalem” (Rev. 21:1-2). We know why Jesus came into the world, why He became like us in human flesh. Jesus wants us to cooperate with him in our salvation. We have closed the first heaven to ourselves through sin. Jesus, by his death, opens heaven for us. Having received the Holy Spirit, we are to cooperate with his graces to merit participation in the New Jerusalem, the Kingdom of God. In Scripture, we encounter categories that we are to know and arrange our lives accordingly. The new image of heaven that Jesus presents to us when we love one another, that “… by this, all will know that you are my disciples” (Jn 13:35), awakens in our hearts’ commitment, hope, and love. The words of Jesus are a source of energy for our life when God is our Father, whose heart is full of love and mercy. Jesus, at his ascension, promised us that he was coming to prepare a place for us. The old image of heaven causes us to fear the greatness and holiness of God. In the Old Testament, Isaiah cries out: “Woe is me, yes, I am lost. For I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell among men of unclean lips” (Isaiah. 6:5). Similarly, before accepting Jesus as his Redeemer and Savior, Peter says to him: “Lord, depart from me, for I am a sinful man” (Lk. 5:8). Jesus had to convince Peter and the apostles that He came into the world for the weak and sinful, not to those who think they have no sins and do not need God’s help. New earth arises in us when we believe in the love of God and begin to respond to His love with our lives. Words alone are not enough: “Faith without works is dead” (Jes 2:26). God wants us to build a “new earth” by accepting the “new commandment” by living a life of love among ourselves.

New earth must be built up in everyone who has believed in Christ. Life events tell us that it is not enough to be born into a Christian family, and it is not enough to be a believer as a child or only sometimes when it suits me. At baptism, the seed of faith was planted in our souls. The growth is given to us by God. None of us knows when the harvest – death – will come for us. We must work on the role of our faith. It is impossible to live alone in life. Interpersonal relationships are often tricky, unpleasant, and challenging. Not only do others have faults, shortcomings, commit mistakes, and sins, but each of us. That is why we are obliged to forgive each other. Jesus teaches us to implement the command to love one another in our lives. We understand that Jesus’ words about this command are still valid today. They have not lost their meaning. We must keep them if we want to be saved.
A look at Jesus says that he first acted and then spoke. First, he forgives sins, and when he speaks of love. Let us remember Zacchaeus. Jesus gives his life for us and thus does not just talk about love.

Those who want to speak of love must mature in it. It is not something that can be rehearsed. Developing in love grows out of knowing God personally to us. Love, according to the gospel, is not ignorant and blind. It is undoubtedly related to knowledge. We realize that Jesus-style love is not based on a declared truth but a proper attitude. Thus, Jesus teaches us to love even when our love is not reciprocated, even at the sacrifice of our own lives.
When the Turk Mehmet Ali Agca assassinated Pope John Paul II in St. Peter’s Square on May 13, 1981, we know that the Pope was not angry with his murderer, but he came to visit him in prison later that year that he loved him.
On May 4, 1998, a tragedy happened. A member of the Swiss Guard, Cédric Tornay, shot his superior, Lieutenant Colonel Alois Estermann, his wife, and then shot himself as well. It was out of jealousy. We know that the murdered man’s family also came to his funeral. Why? To tell them not to be angry with him. These believers know the words: “Everyone angry with his brother will go to judgment” (Mt. 5:22).
We know that we are to love one another. There is no need for anyone to remind us of this. But we also know how difficult it is to love our neighbor. To love those who are different from us. It is true that if all people were as we want them to be, we would have no difficulty loving them. However, we know that this will never be the situation on earth. And that is why, at Easter time, Jesus’ words are timely, and it is convenient to take note of them and arrange ourselves accordingly. Judas leaves the Upper Room to betray him, but Jesus doesn’t stop loving him. Jesus loved us to the uttermost.
We will meet many little Judases in our lives, too. Shall we stop loving them? Do we become Judases ourselves, and do others have to stop loving us? We should want to beg for true love, both for God, our neighbors, and ourselves. We realize that Jesus wants us to renounce hatred, evil retaliation, aggression, judgments… After Mass, we return to ordinary life. To people who may not respond to our love with love but with sin. We must not and do not want to hate them and follow them in sin. Therefore, let us ask the Eucharistic Christ for the strength to persevere in sound, in love.

Quo Vadis? Where are you going? The mother, from the opening of the sermon, loves her daughter. Brother loves brother. This is what Jesus expects of us.

Sometimes one finds oneself at a crossroads, not knowing which way to go next to reach the right destination. So, it is in the spiritual life. One finds oneself at a crossroads and asks: how to proceed? Decision-making is challenging when one realizes how much unnecessary journey and effort one has already made, just because one has not thought, taken advice, wanted to experience something, etc. Perhaps even today, at this very moment, we find ourselves at a crossroads, searching for the right path that would lead us to true happiness, that would resolve our doubts and answer life’s most important questions. It is not easy. Often we are caught off guard, and even when we take the right path, we must not take chances.

Jesus wants to intervene in our lives. He declares interesting words about Himself: “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (Jn 14:6).

In our life journeys, we often hear but also find ourselves stating that there must be someone who created all this, who controls it all, namely God. Many people believe in God in this peculiar, straightforward way. But we know more about it – thanks to the teachings given to us by Jesus Christ. He has also invited us on this journey to God, the Creator. He who became Savior for us. His actions thus become a signpost for us, a signpost that wants us to arrive at our destination, guaranteed and successfully. We, therefore, understand His teaching as both a guide and an open gate that leads to God the Father. All we have to do is step out and follow in his footsteps.
We realize that our goals are our salvation, eternal happiness, and meeting with the Father. How well we go through life when we have a clear plan! But how difficult life is when one lives in uncertainty. But what if there is “that” which I deny, which I do not want to acknowledge, which I resist and avoid in every possible way?

We often liken ourselves to pilgrims walking towards eternity. When we communion with God, we do not have to be afraid, even if we cannot completely rid ourselves of anxiety. But we accept the words of the Lord Jesus, which become our strength: “Let not your heart be troubled!…. In my Father’s house are many mansions… and I will prepare a place for you…” (Jn 14:1-3).

However, do we ask, in what sense did Christ become our way into this eternal dwelling place? He tells us: “… and also believe in me… I am the way, the truth…” (Jn 14:1-6). Christ is then our way when He gives us the truths to believe and gives us the principles, the commandments, by which we are to live on our life’s journey. Many of these commands seem difficult for us.
We know that living according to the Gospel is demanding and requires much of a person. But behind all of this, we see the difficulties that we must overcome and master and see the reward in eternity. Therefore, he who looks at eternity, at Christ, in this way, will not say that it is difficult because he longs for something precious, which this difficulty guarantees. Many forsake the way for problems, but those who have genuinely believed in Christ make progress. Many are for our edification in good and evil. Many have gone only for the glitter. We see many tragedies, human misfortunes, wrecks… Many don’t even know why they don’t believe. They keep repeating something that doesn’t logically agree, or they want to replace God with something that will silence their questions. Until when? And how?

Human ways are sometimes accessible. There is something strange about how sin can paint a new sin pink. Sin breeds sin. And happiness, joy, and contentment drift away, fade, and fade away. But Jesus says: “Whoever wants to come after me, let him take up his cross and follow me” (Mt. 16:24). And in another place, he adds, “My yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Mt. 11:30).
This, however, a man must be able to accept, decide for it, and not just expect another to do it for him, or that he can only choose the cream and better… We realize that we have many resources to help us walk life’s journey victoriously. However, we need to notice them and implement them in our lives.

Let us often reflect on our journey in life. What is our path? What is it that makes our trip the most difficult? Why are we so oblivious, superficial, and indifferent on our journey? Let us ask Jesus to be our guide to right living.

Brothers and sisters, it is a great joy for parents to look into their child’s face and see their face in it. When a father holds his son in his arms, we involuntarily look for similarities in features and later characters. Our human sight wants to penetrate it all. : we want to see.

Even the apostles wanted to see the Father. And Jesus answers in astonishment, “Philip, I have been with you so long, and you do not know me? Whoever sees me sees the Father…” (Jn 14:9).

This passage from the Gospel of John again contains one almost `amazing’ point – a misunderstanding in the dialogue between Jesus and his disciples. Jesus’ thinking is radically different. Once again, he is out of step with his surroundings. He transcends the myopia of human ideas. Philip surely was asking quite sincerely – even plainly.
But… it’s best if we put ourselves “in the shoes” of Philip for a moment and imagine Jesus addressing us by name as well, asking, “You’ve been with me so long, and you don’t know me?”
Indeed, that’s how long you’ve been with us, Lord – years, decades… That’s how long we’ve been praying for you, trying to communicate with you, pleading with you… Many of us could confess our personal experience of Christ, yet we still don’t know him, we doubt… We want to see the Father as if the Son were not enough. And that’s the minor problem with our relationship.

Especially in the 1990s, Father & Son type companies appeared in our living space like mushrooms after the rain. What has been a decade or more long tradition in Western economies? Father and son – continuity of life, ideas, work… What a natural thing. Quite close to us.

Something similar, but an entirely different relationship quality, is presented today by Jesus. Our quality of relationship with Jesus is also built on the understanding of the phrase: “He who sees Me sees the Father.” Notice that everything Jesus does, he makes it in the people’s hearts and does not just bind it to his person. He is constantly talking about the Father. And we always feel the warmth of the relationship between him and the Father – we think it in his words, his attitudes. The Father’s whole life is determined by unity with the Son and vice versa.

Today is a new challenge for our faith. A faith that goes beyond parochialism to persons is faith in the Trinity – in a relationship that produces love. He who loves is very close to seeing more than Philip saw. To see the Father in the Son. That he not be seduced by the temptation of our experience, which presents the relationship of father and son as a struggle, a competition, and sometimes even hatred.

Jesus spoke to the apostles and another lesson of the Gospel that is of fundamental importance for us. The Father-Son relationship is eternal, and we are called to live his image already here on earth. The Father-Son relationship is existential for each of us. In a sense: it determines our whole life. Let us not be afraid to embrace this mystery of the relationship between the Father and the Son, for only it will teach us to live our fatherhood and our sonship properly. Each of us is both father and son. If this is not the case, there is still a long way to go…

Today, I especially wish all fathers and sons the unity Jesus presented today. The agreement that is a witness to the relationship

Imagine this situation: you are sitting in a car or bus with faulty brakes. You are sitting waiting to die, and you don’t know it. If you knew it or suspected it, you would certainly do something to prevent it, forestall it. You wouldn’t have sat down and got into that vehicle until this serious fault of bad brakes had been corrected.

The lives of those who have refused to believe in Christ should be changed as soon as possible because they are just like those who get into a vehicle without brakes. The words of the Gospel warn us of this: ‘He who despises me and does not accept my words has his judge.’ (Jn 12:48).

Therefore, those who have lost faith or have not believed in Christ are critical because they do not realize how their eternal happiness is threatened. They need to understand that those who have refused to believe in Christ should seek to change their position. We see how many ways God is trying to show man how his life is threatened, not only here on earth, but especially his eternal life. Unbelief in Christ is also unbelief in God, and God wants to save all men.
St. Paul says that God created us without us, but only our help can save us. That is why He sent His Son to teach us everything we need to do to be saved. Jesus taught us two gifts that we must not overlook: that we have a reason, which makes us the pinnacle of all creation, and free will, which must cooperate with a defense even in the salvation of our souls.

But let us also note today that God allows trials to come upon us. Not to lose us, but to make us even more deserving of his love. That is why he sometimes blinds our eyes and hardens our hearts so that we can then touch the bottom of God’s grace. Therefore, let us rightly understand that the gift of God can also be such conditions in our lives:

Man is dissatisfied with himself when:
– he experiences disappointment
– he feels the sickness of his body or his neighbor
– experiencing the death of a loved one
– feels temptation of body and soul

God does not allow this to destroy man even more, or because He is not interested in His creation, but on the contrary. In our faith, we should rightly understand the words of the old Christian proverb: “Whom the Lord God loves, He visits with a cross.” We should realize this before any of the trials above of faith come upon us.

None of us can say that we have not yet encountered difficulties in our faith. We must realize that the Lord wants to test us again and again, on the one hand, and the other hand, that here on earth, we may serve out the penalties of the sins of unbelief which we have committed, or that by working on ourselves we may win a higher degree of glory for ourselves.

But let us also be aware that through our efforts, sufferings, and trials, through our example, He wants to win other brothers and sisters to His side. For more than one Christian’s right attitude towards God, when seen by indifferent and unbelieving people, prompts them to reflect and contemplate. How many people have found their way to Christ based on the well-lived life of a believing Christian!

Therefore, let us not accept the trials that the Lord sends upon us as a punishment, but as a grace that the Lord Jesus wants to cooperate with us and that He has chosen us from among many to complete in our own body what is still lacking in the body of Christ. This is how St. Paul mentions it in his letter.
We realize that not believing in God’s help, in His protection, or in His reward for all we do for the salvation of our souls and our neighbors would be a great insult and betrayal of the love of Jesus. Jesus did not love us only when He spoke of His passion and death. Jesus loved us even when He said: “It is finished” (Jn 19:30). This means for us today that when we genuinely take heart, we will see God in Jesus, and so we will pass from darkness to light, from death to life.

None of us wishes to sit in a car that has terrible brakes. We fear for our physical life. Therefore, let our attitude to faith also be more severe and more responsible so that we may not know one day the disappointment that could come very quickly, unforeseen.

We know that human, animal, and plant life is impossible without light. We know that light is a special force that can bring forth new life. We believers also know that our souls also need light; though invisible to our senses, light is the light of grace necessary for salvation.

In Jerusalem, the Feast of the Dedication of the Temple is also called the Feast of Light. In Solomon’s Sermon on the Mount, Jesus, when challenged by the Jews, declares himself the Anointed Messiah, saying, “I have already told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name testify of me, but you do not believe because you are not of my sheep….” (Jn 10:25).

We know that the apostle John wrote his gospel after the three Synoptics-evangelists because the personality of Christ was already then beginning to be attacked by the first terrorists. John wants to show with his Gospel that there is only one way to know the answer to the question: Who is Christ?

And we are to believe his works, and that is also the answer. His works are a sign that God is behind them, that he is working with Jesus, and bears witness to Christ as his Son through them. This is what the Jews were resisting, and therefore if anyone resists this, he will not be able to arrive at the truth. But whoever accepts the testimony of God in the works of the Lord Jesus, we can say that it is God the Father Himself who gives it to Jesus; that is, such a person hears the voice of the Lord Jesus, becomes His sheep, and thus receives from Him eternal life.

Jesus the Good Shepherd gives his life for his sheep so that they can rely on him, and he testifies to this by saying, “… no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. the Father and I are one.” (Jn 10:29-30). This means that their salvation is assured. The most significant reason why believers who have come to know the Lord Jesus and have heard His voice follow Him and come to salvation is precisely that unity which exists between the Father and the Son, that is, unity in the divine essence: “The Father and I are one” (Jn 10:30). Just as the Father wants to save all men and therefore bears witness to Jesus and gives salvation through him to those who believe in him, the Lord Jesus provides salvation by choosing to accept the task of saving humanity and making this sacrifice of his life. Therefore, we assume that our salvation is in the hands of God, and no one can snatch us out of the hands of God.
We still must let it unfold in concrete life when we realize this. Jesus’s words: “My sheep hear my voice, I know them, and they follow me.” (Jn 10:27), address the practical part of putting Jesus’ words into practice.

It is the keeping of the Beatitudes that Jesus said on the mountain. They are the examples he gave the apostles at the Last Supper and during his public appearances. And it is also the prayer that Jesus called all who would believe in him to through the apostles. This brings our lives alight before all doubts, fears, and insecurities will recede, albeit sometimes slowly.
“And everyone who leaves houses, brothers and sisters, or father and mother for my name’s sake” (Mt 19:29).
This is the way of light. We know that whoever encounters the light does not desire darkness because the light is better.

But we know that the first step is not enough. Even when weariness and other difficulties come in the spiritual life, let us remain in trust in the Good Shepherd. We know that He leaves 99 sheep on the mountain, goes after the one strayed one, and rejoices in its return. This is a fantastic thought that Jesus loves us more than we can often imagine. We are more likely to wave our hand over ourselves, put out the flickering wick, or quench the broken reed. But he is like the woman who, when she sweeps the house and finds a lost drachma, calls her friends, her neighbors, and they rejoice together.

This is the light that enriches. The kind father in the parable of the prodigal son is such a light. He overtakes his son and forgives him because he loves him so much—light triumphs over darkness. And Jesus does all this only because, as he says, he sees the Father doing it: “The Father and I are one.” (Jn 10:30).
To be a good shepherd is not only a matter of the priest, but a good shepherd should also be a father, mother, superior, and brother to brother. Know how to say a good word. To understand how to accept this word, to put away even the sins of others: to agree with the sin of another, to help the sin of another, to stand up for the sin of another, not to punish the evil, and so on.

As we can hardly imagine a vegetative, animal life without light, may there be more and more light and grace in our spiritual life as well

Nowadays, we are accustomed to being reminded of some vocations that society needs, and there is a shortage of them. We celebrate the day of builders, rail workers, teachers, etc. Our Church throughout the world also commemorates one vocation: the priestly vocation. I ask everyone not to accept this reflection as praise, a preference for the priest, but we all realize the severe need, which can be expressed with the thought or motto: Lord, give us good priests! Let us turn these words into an even more sincere prayer because today, more than ever, we need more priests than in the past.

“My sheep hear my voice, I know them, and they follow me.” (Jn 10:27).

As we follow the texts of the Sunday Gospel readings, we sense the Lord Jesus’ great concern for the Church here on earth, for his brothers and sisters. Last Sunday, we read about the event after the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus when He appeared to the Apostles for the third time on the shores of the Sea of Tiberias. In this encounter, Jesus asked Peter a question – do you love me? – to which Peter had to answer three times. We know that this so impressed Peter that he realized the seriousness of his Master’s words and wept at the last answer. Christ made Peter the first Pope, the first Bishop among the Apostles, and because he went to preach the teachings of the Lord Jesus in Rome, where he died, our faith is called Roman and Catholic because we are followers of the teachings of the Lord Jesus.
We know that the Lord Jesus did not cease to care for His Church even after His ascension, that He promised her the Holy Spirit, which came to pass on the tenth day after His ascension. Even today, the Holy Spirit directs His Church through the visible Head of the Church-the Pope.
The Holy Father John Paul II also often used the words of today’s Gospel in his travels around the world as the representative of Christ to stress the need for new vocations, both religious and priestly.
That Jesus used a simile familiar to his hearers in ordinary life – the sheep listen to the shepherd and follow his voice – is not unworthy of us. We feel that this is not to diminish the dignity of man, but it is a beautiful simile, an excellent thought. We know that a good shepherd is willing to do everything he can not to lose a single sheep entrusted to him.

The Lord Jesus died for all. Jesus is the Shepherd, and we are His flock. That is why we understand the words of the Gospel to mean, “My Father who gave them to me is greater than all, and no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. the Father and I are one.” (Jn 10:30).

When we observe what has been happening in the Church in our own country since the Second Vatican Council, we find that the priest’s attitude has changed toward unbelievers and believers. The priest of the 21st century is aware that it is not he who is to be served but he who is to do. However, many people misunderstand this. Some would like to go so far as to see the priest as their vassal, come running at the nod of the hand and oblige them in everything, renounce their regulations, conscience, respect their power and position, their strength. The priest today must be especially aware that he is working with the two great gifts of God, that not only he-the priest-but also those around him, the people, have the gift of reason and free will. That is why the Church of today does not want to pressure, threaten, but rather instruct, to explain that the believer or the baptized person does not only have rights in his faith but also has duties. When we realize this principle, no one will say that a pastor “must” when your life does not indicate a believer!

As a priest respects the teachings of Christ, so he must demand that of his faithful. Many look at the priest incorrectly. Some underestimate him; others ascribe to him what he does not have at all. A priest is first and foremost a person who consciously and voluntarily, after preparation in the seminary, receives from the hands of the bishop the power of the priest, which he receives not from the bishop but Jesus Christ Himself. This thing, however, does not absolve him of his human weaknesses and imperfections. He is left with his temperament, abilities, hereditary qualities, and other positive and negative characteristics. Therefore, especially today, those who see only faults in a priest must recall the words of St. John Mary Vianney. He said: “The faithful have such a priest as they ask for,” This means that criticism without help, good advice, a word of appreciation, understanding, and prayer is little enough. Many people, in turn, want from the priest what he cannot do. The priest is only a facilitator of grace.

Lacordaire says: – The priest is the man to whom Jesus Christ has entrusted all men.
Francois Mauriac expressed the meaning and, at the same time, the power of the priest in this way: – I ask nothing else from the priest but that he should give me God.-
Giovanni Papini wrote: – The salvation of the world is in the hands of the priest! Christianity is the only medicine that can heal humanity, and the priest is the only doctor who can dispense it.-
Otilia Mosshammer explains: – The vocation of a priest is quite different from that of a doctor, a teacher, or an engineer. The science that the priest has to learn is the folly of the cross. The priestly office means continuing the work of Christ, proclaiming the truth, and leading the faithful to eternal life, to the goal, distributing graces in the sacraments. As the authorized mediator of God, He has the power to sacrifice Christ for the people.

All these statements can be summed up in words; The priest is the mediator between God and the people. And the priest himself must be aware of this. He must not forget that he is a precious vessel in which God is hidden.

There were several families and children at the retreat, and among them was a young man. The next day they already knew each other; they knew about each other, only nothing about the young man. Is he single or married? What does he do? He was cheerful, bright, but also strange. No one asked him precisely what they were interested in. It wasn’t until the next day that a little girl of about 12 asked, “Uncle, are you an engineer like my father, too?”
The man smiles and says: “I have a college degree, and I’m not an engineer. I go to the hospital to see the suffering, and I am not a doctor. I teach children and adults, and I am not a teacher or a professor. People come to me to cry, and I am not a psychologist. I often preach, and I am not a politician. I wear different clothes every day, and I am not an actor. So, what do you think I am?”
Though not brought up Catholic, the girl answered correctly, “Then you are none other than a Catholic priest.”

Brothers and sisters, I wish you often and beg for graces daily. I pray for you a lot because it is my duty. Today, on the Feast of the Good Shepherd, I would like, if you will permit me, to use this solemnity, in a way, for my benefit. I want to thank all of you who help me in any way and, at the same time, I want to ask you: to pray for me because my vocation also depends on you, on your prayers and your example.

Let us pray: Mary, Queen of priests, intercede for us!