A Shepard's Care
Fr. Ernest's Weekly Column 

This weekend we focus on our Stewardship of Creation. This has nothing to do with political agendas or scientific theories. It’s as simple as this: God created a beautiful world and placed human beings within it to cultivate and take care of it (see Genesis 1:15). Stewardship of Creation invites us to do two things. 1) Be thankful to God for the gift of creation, which includes ourselves. And 2) Express our gratitude to God by doing what we can to cultivate and take care of creation. I pray that this reflection will inspire us to grow as good stewards of creation.

Today’s gospel passage describes the transition of Peter from a fisherman to a shepherd through the graceful call of Jesus (John 21: 1-19). As fishermen, he and his six companions worked all night but caught nothing. At the break of dawn, we can imagine their disappointment as the only thing filling their submerged nets was the rays of the rising sun. Then the risen Son appeared on the beach inviting them to “cast the net over the right side of the boat and you will find something.” Indeed! Their net is stunningly filled with so many fish that they cannot even pull it into the boat! They realize that “It is the Lord!” and Peter jumps into the sea toward Jesus, while the others drag the net through the water towards the beach.

Numerous people have expressed their sorrow to me over the recent death of Pope Francis. But I must admit that I do not share their sorrow. It’s not that I had enough of Pope Francis and am happy to see him vacate the See of Peter. Quite the opposite. I think he did many good things for the Church and humanity. But after all the physical challenges he had in recent years, frankly, I’m happy the Lord has relieved him of his suffering. As a Catholic who believes in the resurrection of the body and life everlasting, I pray and trust that the God of Love is shining the rays of His mercy upon his servant on this Divine Mercy Sunday.

Today we begin to celebrate the greatest event in human history: the resurrection of Jesus our Lord. We begin the season of Easter which extends for fifty days. The mystery of the resurrection is so profound that we need at least fifty days to ponder it, to celebrate it, and to appropriate it into our lives. Since this season is just beginning, the Church does not give us all the information on this first day. We only hear the beginning of the story: the discovery of the empty tomb.

Welcome to Holy Week which extends from Palm Sunday to Easter. It includes the Sacred Triduum: Holy Thursday of the Lord’s Supper, Friday of the Lord’s Passion, and Holy Saturday with the great Easter Vigil. Since we have a whole week to contemplate the paschal mystery—the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus—you may wonder why we read the Good Friday story on Palm Sunday?

In this weekend’s first reading, the Lord announces: “I put water in the desert and rivers in the wasteland for my chosen people to drink, the people whom I formed for myself, that they might announce my praise” (Isaiah 43:20-21).

“It’s not fair!” we catch ourselves thinking when we read the parable of The Prodigal Son (Luke 15: 11-32). The parable could easily be renamed “The Prodigal Father.” The word “prodigal” means to spend money or resources recklessly and extravagantly; something (or someone) that is lavishly abundant or generous. It applies to both the younger son and the father.

Moses was about eighty years old as he quietly led his father-in-law’s flock across the desert to the base of Mt. Horeb. After his escape from Egypt, he had been dwelling in that region with his wife, Zippo’rah, and their son for about forty years. He was probably expecting to slip peacefully into retirement.

The transfiguration of Jesus is told in the gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke and read by the Church on the Second Sunday of Lent. This year we hear Luke’s account which has one very interesting addition. All three tell of Jesus’ appearance being transformed into dazzling white, and all three tell of Moses and Elijah speaking with Jesus. But only Luke tells us what they were speaking about. The “spoke of his exodus that he was going to accomplish in Jerusalem” (Luke 9:31).

Sometimes prayer is a battle, a battle to stay focused on what matters most: our relationship with God. Our thoughts and feelings can easily be accosted by distractions and temptations. That’s only human. Even Jesus, who was human and divine, allowed himself to be tempted, as we hear in the gospel reading for this Sunday. Each year on the First Sunday of Lent of Lent we hear the story of the temptation of Jesus in the desert. The gospels tell us that it was the Holy Spirit that led him into the desert, and Matthew and Luke point out the specific reason Jesus was led there: “to be tempted by the devil” (Matthew 4:1; Luke 4:2).