A PASTORAL LETTER
FOR
GOOD SHEPHERD SUNDAY
(The Fourth Sunday of Easter)
24/25 April 2010

TO BE READ PUBLICLY AT MASS IN ALL CHURCHES OF THE DIOCESE
ON THE WEEKEND OF SATURDAY/SUNDAY 24/25 APRIL, 2010

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

The universal Church celebrates this Sunday as Good Shepherd Sunday, when we look to Christ as our true Shepherd and Guardian of our souls. There is only one Shepherd and that, of course, is Christ Himself. But the Church today invites us to turn our thoughts to our human shepherds who stand in Christ’s place and feed His flock. I am referring to our priests who minister so faithfully to you in Christ’s name. I am also thinking of the future priests whom the Church and our Diocese of Lancaster will need for tomorrow and the years ahead. In this important matter I ask for the help of your prayers.

Christ tells us in our gospel reading that it was to give life to His flock that He came as our Shepherd, and the life which we receive through the sacraments of the Church was gained at the price of His blood. As Good Shepherd, He laid down His life for His sheep. We His people are therefore very precious to Him and He will never abandon us. The Father has placed us in the care of his Son as our Shepherd, and Christ will remain faithful to that task until the end. To assist Him, He calls certain people to priestly ministry and urges us in the gospel to pray that those who hear the call to the priesthood will have the generosity to respond.

We have all in our lifetime lived through great change and we may feel at times that the challenges facing our faith, and especially vocations to the priesthood today, can almost be overwhelming. Yet that would be to underestimate the power of God and the abiding presence of the risen Christ in the midst of His people, and so we must never doubt the effectiveness of our prayers, encouragement and personal sacrifices where vocations are concerned. Our Father in heaven knows all our needs, even before we ask Him, but we must turn to Him with prayerful hearts that are also open and generous.

My dear people, I pay tribute today to your faithful priest-shepherds who in Christ’s name feed you with Word and Sacrament, especially at Mass in the Holy Eucharist. I thank them on your behalf for all that they are and for what they do for you. I invite you to express your thanks to your priests by asking the Lord in sincere prayer to give us other shepherds to follow them, and so ensure that Christ will always stand in our midst, feeding His flock as the one and true Shepherd.

With my blessing and an assurances of prayer,
Yours sincerely in the Risen Lord,

+Michael Campbell OSA
Bishop of Lancaster