A Special Shoutout

Cherishing our mother as voices of Good Shepherd

05/11/2025

John 10:27-30 Jesus said: “My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. No one can take them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.”

Even though this is Mother’s Day weekend, I want to give a special shoutout to grandmothers. Why? Well, in some ways a grandmother’s love towers even taller than a mother’s love. One woman told me: “I never thought I could love anyone more than I love my own children. And then I had grandchildren.” So to all you mothers out there who think there’s no greater love than you feel for your kids: just wait.

Someone recently sent me a video about what a preacher learned from his grandmother. The preacher says: “My grandma always said: ‘You only have two things to worry about: whether you’re healthy or whether you’re sick. Now, if you’re healthy, you have nothing to worry about.’

“But if you’re sick, you have two things to worry about: whether you’re going to get better or you’re going to get worse. If you’re better, you got nothing to worry about. If you get worse, you got two things to worry about: whether you’re going to live or whether you’re going to die.’

“If you live, you’ve got nothing to worry about. But if you die, you’ve got two things to worry about: whether you’re going to heaven, or whether you’re going to hell. If you go to heaven, you’ve got nothing to worry about. But if you go to hell, you’ve got two things to worry about, namely, original or extra crispy.’”

My own grandmother came from India and lived with us in Little Rock while I was in elementary school. She taught me something about receiving Holy Communion that still shapes my faith today as a priest. She warned me not to chew the Host (the holy bread) when I put it in my mouth. Why not? Well, she said blood would come out because that is the Body of Christ.

Now, that is not going to happen. But back in elementary school that scared me almost as much as saying the only two things you must worry about is original or extra crispy. In other words, my grandmother taught me to receive Holy Communion with great care and devotion. I still don’t chew the Host as a priest. Grandmothers shows us their love by sharing their faith. That's why a grandmother's love is so great.

The Fourth Sunday of Easter is “Good Shepherd Sunday.” Hence, we always read from John 10, the locus classicus on the Good Shepherd. Jesus says today: “My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” And in the first reading from Acts people hear the Good Shepherd’s voice as he speaks through his apostles.

For example, Acts 14:44 reads: “On the following sabbath, almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord.” That is, people heard Jesus when the apostles opened their mouths. And Jesus the Good Shepherd did not stop speaking through substitute shepherds in the 1st century. He continues to do so right up to the 21st century by raising up our newest pope, Leo XIV, the first U.S. pope.

Among his many titles, perhaps his most esteemed moniker is “Vicar of Christ.” That is, Pope Leo XIV speaks on behalf of Christ the Good Shepherd. How providential, then, that on Good Shepherd Sunday we can utter the name of our papal shepherd at Mass again, which we have been omitting since Pope Francis died. Of course, every sentence that leaves a pope’s lips are not necessarily from Jesus.

But when Leo XIV speaks about faith and morals, our ears should perk up because Jesus is speaking to us today like he spoke to the people of Pisidia through the apostles 2,000 years ago. The Good Shepherd said unequivocally: “My sheep hear my voice” and Jesus makes sure we hear him by sending us holy shepherds, like our grandmothers and Pope Leo XIV.

Let me also give a special shoutout to my own mother on this Mother’s Day, because I frequently hear the Good Shepherd’s voice when she opens her mouth. When I was just ordained a priest, my mom told me: “Son, always wear your Roman collar wherever you go. It will keep you out of trouble.” Mothers know their sons better than the sons know themselves.

My mom is a registered nurse, and she takes very good care of herself. She eats sensible and balanced meals, she exercises by doing chair yoga and walking 10,000 steps daily, she drinks lots of water, and very little caffeine and only a few sips of wine. The older I get the more I see the wisdom of her ways: I try to eat better, I exercise by walking, but I’m still working on drinking fewer martinis.

Yesterday I visited my parents with my dog Apollo, and I mentioned that Apollo must follow some basic rules. He only eats dog food, no people food, he sleeps in his crate every night, he does not jump on people, and we pray before he eats. Suddenly, it occurred to me I raised Apollo exactly how my parents, especially my mom, raised me. Apollo always wears his Roman collar, too!

My friends, pay attention to how the Good Shepherd speaks to us and we can hear his voice today through the pope, the Bible, the sacraments, and the saints. But he also speaks to us tenderly through our precious mothers and grandmothers. I record my homilies and the first person I send them to is my mother. She always texts me back: “Wow, that was a fantastic homily!” My grandmother might say: “You only have two things to worry about.”

Praised be Jesus Christ!