The Qualifications of the Shepherd: A Job Description by the Lord Jesus

 Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, do you love me?... Feed my sheep.”

1.  When Jesus was preparing the chief minister of the Church, He said, “Peter, do you love me? Feed my sheep” (cf. John 21:17). He did not ask, “Peter, are you able to administrate a corporation? Are you good at finances and accounting? Do you have a degree? Are you a good singer?” Jesus did not ask, “Peter, are you good at administration, at dealing with things?” Jesus did not even ask, “Peter, do you know me well?” I am not saying that those things are not important, and sometimes necessary, in a shepherd. But when Jesus was looking for a shepherd, for someone who could feed His sheep, He asked about the most important and necessary thing: “Peter, do you love me?” A true shepherd is, first of all, someone for whom Jesus is food and treasure, a man in love with Jesus, a man with a personal connection to Him.

All those who take care of people need to realize that they have to take care of themselves first. “Isn’t that selfish?” No: Jesus said that we should love our neighbor as we love ourselves. And when I speak about taking care of ourselves, obviously I am not talking about our own material interests, but about our own souls. If you want others to love Jesus, you first have to love Jesus. Otherwise, you are a blind guide, guiding people to a place you yourself don’t know. If you do not make efforts and sacrifices to have a better relationship with Jesus, by receiving the sacraments, praying, seeking advice about spiritual matters, deepening in your understanding of the faith; if you do not cultivate in your heart a desire to grow in the love of Jesus; if you love Him, but not too much… what will you give others?

The efficacy of a shepherd comes from his union with Jesus, a union of love. The closer you get to the fire, the more you burn and are able to heat those around you. It is not so much what or how much you say that will make an impact on people, but rather who are you who say those things. Are you in love with Jesus? One smile of yours will melt a heart. Are you not in love? You can talk for an hour and be like a clashing cymbal, annoying like the ringtone of someone who forgets to turn off their cell phone in church. Being a shepherd, therefore, is most importantly, and first of all, a relationship with Jesus. It is not something you are good at, but someone you are in love with.

2.  And then Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.” Jesus instructed Peter to take care of people, not to take care of things. Pastoral administration can be overwhelming, but it makes no sense when it is done at the expense of the love of people. Being a shepherd is something personal. Out of love, the shepherd feeds the sheep.

The sheep are fed by the Word of God and the Eucharist. This is the shepherd’s job: to preach the Gospel to God’s people and to celebrate for them the Eucharist and the other sacraments. In this way, the loving shepherd feeds the sheep.

I have always felt a little bit inadequate to do pastoral ministry, because there are many things regarding pastoral administration that I am not so good at. Finances, buildings, organizing events, etc. Again, those things are necessary in the good conduction of a parish, and you are lucky I am not in charge… but the point is, my main job as shepherd is feeding the sheep. And, therefore, my main concern should be knowing the Word of God so I can preach it.

Knowing the Word of God is knowing Jesus. And not just knowing about Him, by study and research, but knowing Him personally. Every preacher should be a person well trained in Theology and appreciative of its role in Catholic preaching. But there is a knowledge of the Word of God that comes only from loving the Word. And this is why Jesus said to Peter, “Do you love me? Feed my sheep then. You can only give them what you have, and you can only have me if you love me.” “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him” (John 14:23). The true shepherd, in a way, feeds the sheep with his own self, with his own flesh, because by loving Jesus he has become somehow like another incarnation of Him, who is the One and Only Shepherd of the Church. When the shepherd speaks, the sheep must hear like a resonance of Jesus’ love for them. The true shepherd must not only say what is right, but also be the incarnation of what he says, be a personal witness to the truth he proclaims.

In this way, the call to be a shepherd, like a vocation to the priesthood, is not a call to administrate things but a call to love people. It is a call to love Jesus first, and a call to love people in union with Jesus. It is a call to teach, to feed your people with God’s message. It is a call to teach your people what you have learned in Jesus’ presence, not simply like a scholar but more like a witness. It is a call to celebrate the mass, to set before God’s people the banquet of eternal life in Jesus. May God grant us holy priests, and may he make holier the ones we already have.