Fr. Jerry Schik, o.s.c.

My topic today is the Gospel Path. Jesus is the shepherd who shows us the Gospel Path. Since our image for today is the shepherd, I wish to take a close look at the work of shepherds in the first century. In the time of Christ, they did not have fences, and the sheep were not kept in barns because they moved to a new pasture every day. Each day began with the shepherd moving his flock in hopes of finding greener pastures. The sheep listened to his voice and followed him. The shepherd showed...

We just heard the story of the Passion that took place nearly 2000 years ago, and we need to ask: How does it connect to our lives today? I believe that there are two connections: namely, our sinfulness and God’s mercy. It is a basic fact of life that we are sinful people. We are sinful in thought, word, and deed. When Pope Francis took office he began his speech by saying: “I am a sinner. ”St. John says it so well in the first chapter of his first letter: “If we say that we are without sin,...

My key word for today is SENT. When the People of God left Egypt, they spent 40 years in the Sinai Desert. Then they moved into the Promised Land. But life in the Promised Land was not all sweetness and light. The big problem was robbers. While they were tending their flocks, the robbers would come and steal things from their tents. The worst robbers of all were the Midianites. Why? Because they had domesticated the camel. When they robbed you, they took more than one or two things from your...