A Prayer to Jesus, the Good Shepherd
Faithful Shepherd,
You are not a hireling who runs away at the sight of danger,
but Your fidelity was tested
and proven on the wood of the Cross.
Accept the gift of our gratitude
for Your marvellous care.
Help us to hear and follow Your voice.
Watchful Shepherd,
who protects the flock
and searches tirelessly
for those who wander from the fold,
retrieve the lost and bring them home.
Tend and heal their wounds.
Good Shepherd,
who lays down His Life for His sheep,
nourish Your people with the Bread of Life,
that we may reflect Your likeness
and enjoy the spring of Living Water that never ends.
Amen.
Good Shepherd Sunday
Last Sunday (The Fourth Sunday of Easter), we celebrated Good Shepherd Sunday. The Gospel reading for the day (John 10:11-14) is taken from the Gospel of John where Jesus declares ‘I am the good shepherd.’
The context of the Gospel derives from what is commonly known as ‘The Good Shepherd Discourse.’ In the same chapter in verse 10:10 (one verse prior to the beginning of Sunday’s Gospel) Jesus states, ‘I have come so that they may have life and have it abundantly’. This is where the first part of our College motto Live Fully originates from.
What does it mean to Live Fully (have abundantly)? It goes far beyond the philosophy of embracing everything that life has to offer, or ‘abundance’ in the sense of wealth, social status and intelligence. For Christ Himself tells us that we should not be too concerned with the physical circumstances of our life, “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’. For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed, your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:31-34).
To Live Fully is to know Jesus Christ and the Truth as revealed by Christ and His Church. It is only through Him that we are able to experience the ‘abundance of life.’ That is why in verse 16 of Sunday’s Gospel Jesus states, “I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.” It is from these passages that we get the beautiful image of ‘Jesus the Good Shepherd.’ The image portrays our Lord carrying a lamb over His shoulder. Its symbolism is rich in that it reveals to us God in the person of Jesus Christ as one who watches over us (the sheep), who protects us, loves us and is willing to lay down His life for His sheep.
Good Shepherd Sunday is also traditionally the day we pray for vocations within the Church. We are asked to pray for, or to consider a vocation to the priesthood or consecrated life. We thank God for the gift of our priests, in particular Fr Richard, Fr Simeon, Fr Maurie and Fr Gerard who serve our community. Let us pray to the Holy Spirit to continue to give courage and wisdom to our ‘shepherds’ so they may continue to tend to their ‘flock.’ Let us also pray for our seminarians who are discerning the priesthood and that many of our youth will answer the call to be ‘fishers of men.’
2021 Corpus Christi College Seminarians
Ablaze Youth - St Catherine of Siena Youth Group
Ablaze Youth Group launch!
Date: Friday 30 April
Time: 7:00 – 8:30pm.
Where: Catholic Regional College Caroline Springs
Contact: stcatherineyg@gmail.com
All students are invited to attend. There will be live music (rap) and food. It will be an awesome event.
Please click here to view the Ablaze flyer
8:00am Mass
8:00am Mass will commence every Friday this Term at St Catherine of Siena, Parish Church. All students and their families are welcome to attend. It is a wonderful opportunity to begin the day with the most powerful prayer, the Holy Mass.