Director’s Letter

Director’s Letter

Dear Friends,

Throughout Scripture, God is often spoken about as a shepherd for His people. For example, in the Old Testament we read from the prophet Ezekiel where God says, “I myself will look after and tend my sheep” and Ezekiel tells us that God will rescue His sheep from every place where they have been scattered (Ezekiel 34:11-12).

In Psalm 23, we speak about God as our shepherd as we pray that oft—quoted psalm, “The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I lack. . .He guides me along right paths for the sake of his name. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.”

In the New Testament, in the Gospel of John, Jesus, too, identifies Himself as the Good Shepherd. He tells us what a good shepherd should look like when He says, “. . .a good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. . .I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me. . .and I will lay down my life for the sheep (John 10:11-15).”

God, the Father, and Jesus, the Son of God, are indeed our shepherds. And we are the sheep.

The priest, too, in imitation of Jesus, takes on the role of shepherd for his flock. When the Dominican friar takes the habit and begins the path to priestly ordination, he is laying down his life for God and for us. The friar embarks on a life that is about sacrifice, a life where he will lead his flock to God.

We ask St. Jude to pray for priests so that they guide many souls in this life—away from danger, keeping them in the fold, and leading them to heaven.

In Christ, Our Lady, and St. Jude,

Father John Paul Kern, O.P.
Director, The Rosary Shrine of Saint Jude