“I am the good shepherd…” (John 10:11-18)

Biblical reflections by Mauro Leonardi*, priest and writer

The coherence between the words of eternal life and the earthly existence of Christ, between his being true God and true man, is revealed in being a good shepherd, in the fact that it is He who gives his life, not only at the moment of the Cross, but always, in an existence continuously exposed to humanity, starting from the nativity scene until the last breath on the cross.

From the Gospel according to John 10:11-18

At that time, Jesus said: «I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep. The mercenary - who is not a shepherd and to whom the sheep do not belong - sees the wolf coming, abandons the sheep and runs away, and the wolf kidnaps them and scatters them; because he is a mercenary and does not care about sheep.

I am the good shepherd, I know my sheep and my sheep know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father, and I lay down my life for the sheep. And I have other sheep that do not come from this pen: I have to lead them too. They will listen to my voice and become one flock, one shepherd.

This is why the Father loves me: because I give my life, to then take it back again. Nobody takes it away from me: I give it from myself. I have the power to give it and the power to take it back again. This is the command I received from my Father."

* Mauro Leonardi (Como 1959) has been a priest since 29 May 1988 and has lived in Rome since then. He spends many hours of his day as a priest and prefers building bridges rather than raising walls. For years he has been writing stories, articles, essays and books that revolve around the relationship between man and God. Author of the blogLike Jesus. Abelis (Lindau) is his latest novel. the Volunteers of the Gionata Project thank him for wanting to share these reflections on the word with Us.