All the tribes of Israel came to David in Hebron and said: “Here we are, your bone and your flesh. In days past, when Saul was our king, it was you who led the children of Israel out and brought them back. And the LORD said to you, ‘You shall shepherd my people Israel and shall be commander of Israel.’” When all the elders of Israel came to David in Hebron, King David made an agreement with them there before the LORD, and they anointed him king of Israel. David was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned for forty years. (2 Sam 5:1-7, 10)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/012422.cfm
God raises up holy men and women in every age to shepherd the people: like David, the shepherd who became king, like Saint Francis de Sales who brought a pastoral touch to a delicate situation. This past Saturday, the church beatified four martyrs in El Salvador: Fr Rutilio Grande, Fr Cosme Spessotto, together with two laymen, Manuel Solórzano & Nelson Rutilio Lemus, all of whom gave their lives working for the poor.
These reflections are a result of more than 40 years of ministry as a Roman Catholic priest. Most of these years I spent in the Diocese of Charlotte which covers Western North Carolina. Now I am retired, and live in Medellín, Colombia where I continue to serve as a priest in the Archdiocese of Medellín.
Saint Francis de Sales, bishop & doctor, January 24
