The April 14th, 2013 Gospel includes the account of Jesus asking Peter how much he loves him and then calling him to “feed my sheep.” Our shepherds: priests, bishops, and pope, continue to be called to love Jesus above all else and then in turn to feed the sheep entrusted to their care. Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York recently amazed some journalists just prior to the Papal Conclave. They asked him what all the cardinals were talking about, expecting to hear stories of politics and intrigue. Cardinal Dolan amazed the media when he said the most common topic was the Lord Jesus! The cardinals were simply sharing what they are called to do, love the Lord above all else.
I have
enjoyed reading about the original shepherd of Northern Michigan, Bishop Baraga
in “These Very Stones Cry Out: Stories
on the History of the Diocese of Gaylord.”
His life was not easy, but the Lord had called him to feed the sheep of
Northern Michigan, and so he embraced it.
From a letter to his sister, Bishop Baraga wrote:
“Our church, schoolhouse and my house are of wood, roofed
with tree bark….When it rains I must spread out my cloak over my table on which
I have my books and papers, in order to protect them from inundation. Over my bed I spread my umbrella, and I save
myself, as well as I can, in a corner of my small room where it drips the
least; nevertheless I am happier in my little room than all the European
emperors and kings in their glittering gold palaces.”
He goes on to note:
“…I have already mentioned to you in my last letter how severe winter is
in this desolate land, overgrown with immense forests…Some days in January and
February were so cold that I almost could not finish holy Mass that was
begun. I brought the cruets, in which I
have the wine and water for holy Mass, warm from the stove to the church, and
before I came to the offertory everything was frozen so that I had to break up
the ice in order to pour the wine and the water into the chalice. Scarcely had I poured the wine in the
chalice when it froze instantly, and when I came to the consecration I had to
breathe into the chalice for a long time in order to melt the ice in it a
little; even longer I breathed into the chalice before holy communion in order
to be able to consume the sacred blood.”
Later on he writes, about snowshoeing from settlement to settlement and
sleeping under the winter stars even into his 60’s!
What would
motivate an individual to do this?
Jesus asked him “do you love me.”
And Bishop Baraga and countless other shepherds said “yes” and then went
out and tended the sheep given them by Our Lord, wherever they were. May God continue to bless and sustain our
shepherds!
God
bless you!
Phil Lawson, MTS
Pastoral Associate
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