But the shepherd of the sheep enters by the gate. The keeper opens the gate to him and
the sheep hear his voice; he calls each of his sheep by name and leads them out. When
he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him for they
know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but rather they will run away from him,
because they don’t recognize a stranger’s voice. Jesus used this comparison, but they
did not understand what he was saying to them. So Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, I am
the gate of the sheep. All who came were thieves and robbers, and the sheep did not
hear them. I am the gate. Whoever enters through me will be saved; he will go in and out
freely and find food. The thief comes to steal and kill and destroy, but I have come that
they may have life, life in all its fullness.”

Reflect

“Our God Saves” In today’s Gospel, Jesus identified himself as the gate of the sheepfold.
We may imagine Jesus, as the good shepherd, standing or sitting by the gate of the
sheepfold while trying to protect the sheep from the robbers. The good shepherd’s
relationship with his sheep prompts him to be willing to lay down his life for his sheep.
The laying down of the life of the good shepherd in order to give life to the sheep is a
choice. Should we be following Jesus, our good shepherd.Our choices must be
well-discerned in favor of providing conditions for life to flourish. Our condition, with
regard to the present environmental problems, appears to be the opposite of the condition
which the good shepherd provides. Today is Earth Day. We may ask ourselves if the
choices we make every day contribute to the flourishing of life on earth or to the worsening
of our climate crisis.

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