Feast of Saint Nicholas

Good morning. I don’t know for certain what it is like being a shepherd, but I certainly know what it is like being a husband, and I know what it is to be a parent, and I likewise know what it is like being lost. There is absolutely no hesitation for me in arriving at a clear understanding of the message Jesus is trying to convey to His listeners in the telling of the Parable of the Lost Sheep from today’s Gospel. I know the fear of being lost, I’ve been there. I’ve been physically lost as a young Boy Scout wandering around in the forest failing in my first attempt to negotiate the use of a compass and map, and far more terrifying is that there have been times in my life when I’ve been lost spiritually. I’m grateful the Shepherd came looking for me. I totally understand the commitment on the part of the Shepherd to go in search of the lost sheep, I know that I would do likewise as a husband and as a parent. The faith I know and experience today is a commitment to Jesus Christ in the same way that I am committed to my wife, a commitment that is there regardless of what might presently or ever be going on in our life, it is a commitment affirmed in love. I may not always be loving, I may not always be appreciative, but my love is there all the same; it is there with all the certainty I have in knowing that the sun will rise tomorrow. It is that love which gives me the faith to believe, to believe in a God Who gives me cause to greet that sun every morning and it is the love which drives me to greet my wife every morning—no matter what. It is the same love which would move me to go searching for my wife or any of my children were they to be lost. I understand the sense of loss, the yearning for which Jesus describes in the Parable of the Lost Sheep, and I truly can appreciate the joy He knows in finding the stray. May we communicate to our spouse and our family the love of the Shepherd in all that we do today. In a manner similar to how God sent Saint Nicholas, we too are called and sent by God to give witness to His love. May the life of this good and holy man, Saint Nicholas, whose life we commemorate today serve as an example to us of the love we should have for each other. Make a great day!

 Today we recall the good life, gifts, and works of Saint Nicholas of Myra.  May the Good Lord, through the intercession of Saint Nicholas, bless Father John and the Faith Community of Saint Nicholas Parish in Santa Claus, Indiana.