Pope Francis waves to pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square on April 21, 2024, at the Vatican. / Credit: Vatican MediaRome Newsroom, Apr 21, 2024 / 09:36 am (CNA).Pope Francis reflected on the image of Christ as the Good Shepherd during his Regina Caeli address Sunday, noting that it is a role characterized by his sacrificial love. "Jesus explains that he is not a hired man who cares nothing for the sheep but a man who knows them," the pope said on April 21, the fourth Sunday of Easter, which is traditionally known as Good Shepherd Sunday because it is the theme of the day's Gospel. "It is true, he knows us, he calls us by our name and, when we are lost, he looks for us until he finds us."Pope Francis explained that Christ's role as a shepherd introduced a new logic, observing that he is not acting as a guide or "the head of the flock" but is instead "living in symbiosis" with his people."This is what the Lord wants to tell us with the image of the Good Shepherd: not only tha...
Pope Francis waves to pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square on April 21, 2024, at the Vatican. / Credit: Vatican Media
Rome Newsroom, Apr 21, 2024 / 09:36 am (CNA).
Pope Francis reflected on the image of Christ as the Good Shepherd during his Regina Caeli address Sunday, noting that it is a role characterized by his sacrificial love.
"Jesus explains that he is not a hired man who cares nothing for the sheep but a man who knows them," the pope said on April 21, the fourth Sunday of Easter, which is traditionally known as Good Shepherd Sunday because it is the theme of the day's Gospel. "It is true, he knows us, he calls us by our name and, when we are lost, he looks for us until he finds us."
Pope Francis explained that Christ's role as a shepherd introduced a new logic, observing that he is not acting as a guide or "the head of the flock" but is instead "living in symbiosis" with his people.
"This is what the Lord wants to tell us with the image of the Good Shepherd: not only that he is the guide, the head of the flock, but above all that he thinks of each of us as the love of his life," the pope said to pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square.
Pope Francis emphasized the sacrificial component of the role of the shepherd, observing that Jesus "is not just a good shepherd who shares the life of the flock" but "is the Good Shepherd who has sacrificed his life for us and has given us his Spirit through his resurrection."
The pope asked the faithful to meditate upon this sacrificial dimension of the shepherd so that we bear in mind that "for Christ, I am important, irreplaceable, worth the infinite price of his life."
"It is not just a way of speaking," the pope added, "he truly gave his life for me, he died and rose again for me because he loves me and he finds in me a beauty that I often do not see myself."
The pope also cautioned against the temptation to measure our value based on "trivial things," such as "the goals we achieve" or "on whether we succeed in the eyes of the world, on the judgments of others."
"In order to find ourselves, the first thing to do is to place ourselves in his presence, allowing ourselves to be welcomed and lifted up by the loving arms of our Good Shepherd," the pope said.
The Holy Father also drew attention to Sunday's celebration of the World Day of Prayer for Vocations, which he observed as an "opportunity to rediscover the Church as a community characterized by a polyphony of charisms and vocations at the service of the Gospel."
Following the recitation of the Regina Caeli, the pope renewed his appeal for peace in the Middle East, imploring leaders not to "give in to the logic of vengeance and war" but instead to let "the paths of dialogue and diplomacy prevail, which can do a lot."
"I pray every day for peace in Palestine and Israel and I hope that those two peoples can soon stop suffering," he said.
A map of the Juan Diego Route which goes through Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, and Kentucky, ending in Indiana. / Credit: EWTN News In-DepthCNA Staff, May 18, 2024 / 05:00 am (CNA).The National Eucharistic Pilgrimage will span the United States with four different pilgrimages starting in California, Texas, Mississippi, and Connecticut and meeting in Indianapolis for the 10th National Eucharistic Congress."A cross-country pilgrimage of this scale has never been attempted before. All told, it will travel through 27 states and 65 dioceses, covering a combined distance of 6,500 miles on foot and with the help of support vehicles," said Tim Glemkowski, CEO of the National Eucharistic Congress, Inc. "It will be a tremendously powerful action of witness and intercession as it interacts with local parish communities at stops all along the way."The St. Juan Diego Route, named for the beloved saint who encountered Our Lady of Guadalupe, will start at the sou...
Construction projects are underway in Rome as the city prepares for the 2025 Jubilee Year. / Credit: EWTN NewsRome Newsroom, May 18, 2024 / 06:00 am (CNA).Construction projects are underway in Rome as the city prepares for the 2025 Jubilee Year (Dec. 24, 2024, to Jan. 6, 2026). According to the city's mayor, Roberto Gualtieri, the upcoming "Jubilee of Hope" is expected to draw in an additional 30 million to 35 million tourists to Italy during the Catholic holy year."The jubilee is an extraordinary global event with a great spiritual significance for which the city of Rome must be ready," Gualtieri told EWTN News Vatican Bureau Chief Andreas Thonhauser. "We are working to make it more welcoming so that pilgrims can live the experience of the Jubilee in the best possible way." The city of Rome's online portal Roma Si Transforma currently lists approximately 358 planned projects in the Lazio region in which Rome is located. Each project is categorized as either a culture, inn...
A view of the crowd and nearby waterfront at the opening Mass for World Youth Day in Lisbon, Portugal on Aug. 1, 2023. / Credit: Arlindo Homem/JMJ Lisboa 2023ACI Prensa Staff, May 18, 2024 / 07:00 am (CNA).Jimena, the young woman who regained her sight after receiving Communion at a Mass during World Youth Day (WYD) in Lisbon, Portugal, in August 2023, told ACI Prensa, CNA's Spanish-language news partner, about how she experienced that moment, her return home, and the details of a special meeting she had with Pope Francis during a pilgrimage she made with her family to Rome to thank the Virgin for that "miracle."For two and a half years, Jimena suffered from a loss of sight due to a myopia problem that left her with a 95% vision loss.She traveled to Lisbon from Madrid with a group from Opus Dei. During the days prior, relatives and acquaintances of the young woman organized a novena to pray to Our Lady of the Snows, whose feast day is commemorated Aug. 5, the same day she recov...