Monsignor Gustavo Rodríguez Vega: The Voice of the Pastor (May 11)

“I give them eternal life” (Jn 10:28)

Dear brothers and sisters, I greet you with my usual affection and wish you all the best in the Lord. “Gaudium magnum nuntio vobis: Habemus Papam.” I announce to you a great joy: We have a Pope! Surely all of you have heard this great news through social media: our new Pope is called Leo XIV. Precisely today, on this Fourth Sunday of Easter, we are celebrating the Feast of the Good Shepherd. Therefore, let us celebrate our thanksgiving and entrust our new Supreme Pontiff with his praise.

Today we also celebrate our Yucatan Seminary, so our prayer and collection today are for this holy institution dedicated to the training of future pastors in Yucatan.

Jesus is the only Good Shepherd, while all the shepherds of the Church, from the Pope to the bishops and all the priests, if we shepherd properly, with sound teaching, generous dedication, and good witness, we must say, as Jesus taught us, that we are nothing more than "useless servants," simple instruments that make present the shepherding of the Good Shepherd.

We must distinguish between sound teaching and personal witness. There are those who can give poor witness and yet transmit sound teaching; especially for them, Jesus would tell us: "Do what they tell you, but do not imitate their works" (Mt 23:3). Where shepherds are lacking or those that exist are not as good, Jesus shepherds his sheep directly in a thousand and one ways. Let us remember that God's ways are infinite.

Let us thank the Lord for the many holy shepherds, wise shepherds, and generous shepherds who have always existed and will never be lacking in our Church; such as Pope Francis, a great world leader for peace, for the poor, for prisoners, for migrants, for the sick, for all who suffer, and for the integral care of creation. Let us ask the Lord's forgiveness for all those who fail, so that they may become holy shepherds.

All the pastors of the Church, bishops and priests, must lead the community “cum Petro et sub Petro”; this is a classic Latin expression, meaning “with Peter and under Peter,” that is, in communion with Peter's successor and under his authority. Governing in this way is what ensures the unity of the mystical body of Christ, which is the Church. Throughout the centuries, tensions have never been lacking in this unity, along with some regrettable ruptures, from which other churches have emerged that are no longer “cum Petro et sub Petro.”

It is regrettable, but today there are a few pastors who contradict certain teachings of Pope Francis, dragging the faithful behind them. May we all reconsider, allowing ourselves to be humbly led by the Holy Spirit to the unity of faith, under the guidance of the new successor of Peter, Pope Leo XIV.

Some of those who deviate are ultraconservative, and others, quite the opposite, want to introduce changes into the life of the Church that distance us from orthodoxy in order to adapt to today's world. This has happened primarily in parts of Europe and the United States, although this threat of division also affects us in Mexico and even in Yucatán, with a few faithful. The successor of Peter, as always, must hold the helm of the Church, to guide it so that the ship does not veer, neither to the right nor to the left, but on the straight path of love for God and for one's brothers and sisters.

On the other hand, let us pray for priestly vocations. We cannot hide the small number of seminarians we have, while the population of Yucatán is growing by leaps and bounds, especially in Mérida. Let us pray that many young men may hear the voice of the Lord calling them, so that they may enter the seminary and persevere in their formation. Despite our great need, we must be very careful in the selection of candidates, not seeking perfect candidates, but excluding those who have important work to do in their physical, mental, or spiritual maturity before beginning a path of priestly formation. God bless our seminarians and the formative fathers of our beloved Seminary of Yucatán.

Today's first reading speaks of two excellent shepherds, Saint Paul and Saint Barnabas, worthy representatives of the Good Shepherd, who evangelized the city of Antioch, where they left a large Christian community—in fact, the second largest after Jerusalem, before the formation of the Christian community in Rome.

Suffering persecution in Antioch by the Jewish authorities, they decided to evangelize the pagans as well. They were later expelled, although the community was already well established. It was there that the disciples received the name "Christians," and then, around the year 100, there, they received the name "Catholics," with Saint Ignatius of Antioch as their bishop.

In the second reading, taken from the Book of Revelation, Saint John contemplates in his vision of heaven an innumerable multitude of people "from every tribe, people, and nation" (Rev 7:9). It is the vision of the saints in heaven, whom he sees before the throne of God and of the Lamb, serving him eternally.

Saint John says that “the Lamb will be their shepherd and will lead them to springs of the water of life, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes” (Rev 7:17). Although “shepherd” and “lamb” seem to be opposite terms, Jesus had to be an innocent, sacrificed Lamb to earn the unique and exclusive title of “Good Shepherd.” If a bishop or priest shepherds to the point of giving his life, he resembles Jesus the Good Shepherd in his dedication, becoming an excellent reflection of his eternal ministry.

In the acclamation of Alleluia, taken from the Gospel according to Saint John (cf. Jn 10:14), Jesus declares himself to be the Good Shepherd, who knows his sheep and they know him. It is true that there are millions of human beings who do not know Jesus and who do not recognize themselves as his sheep; but the Lord knows them too, and as soon as they decide to accept him with all that this entails, he will receive them into his great holy flock.

In today's brief Gospel passage from Saint John, Jesus describes the reciprocal relationship that exists between himself and his true sheep. He says: "My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me" (Jn 10:27). To be a true sheep of Jesus is not enough to be baptized and attend church more or less frequently, for the dynamic that authenticates a sheep is "listening and following."

Let us note carefully that it is not just a matter of hearing the Shepherd's voice, but of listening to it; for the one who listens is the one who follows him, that is, the one who thinks, speaks, and acts in the same way that Jesus would. That is listening and following. He knows his sheep much better than the sheep know themselves.

Following Jesus the Good Shepherd has its great reward: eternal life. Jesus affirms that he receives the sheep as a gift and a commission from his Father, so no one can snatch them from his hand. At the same time, the sheep belong to the Father; if the Father and Christ are one, then his sheep have entered into the dynamic of Trinitarian life.

Although Mother's Day was yesterday, May 10th, many mothers will surely be celebrated this Sunday, as it is the day the family can gather. In several countries, Mother's Day is celebrated today, the second Sunday in May. I send a warm greeting to all mothers, especially those in Yucatán.

Last Thursday, we celebrated the mothers of our priests in our cathedral, and it was a good experience. May the pursuit of elevating the dignity of women never be at the expense of properly appreciating the great gift of the maternal charism. A mother's love best reflects God's love in this world. Today we pray for all mothers, as well as for the eternal repose of deceased mothers. May God grant them eternal life.

Have a very happy week everyone. Praise be to Jesus Christ, the risen Good Shepherd!

+ Gustavo Rodríguez Vega

Archbishop of Yucatán