Thus says the Lord GOD: Woe to the shepherds of Israel who have been pasturing themselves! Therefore, shepherds, hear the word of the LORD. (Ez 34:1-11)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/081722.cfm
When Pope Francis says that shepherds should have the smell of the sheep, he’s talking about the problem of clericalism. The Prophet Ezekiel is also talking about shepherds who pasture themselves rather than the sheep. “Shepherds, hear the word of the LORD” and what follows are some of the most terrible words in all the Scriptures. What God wants is that the weak be strengthened, the sick healed, the injured cared for, the strayed to be returned, the lost to be found. As God says: “I myself will look after and tend my sheep.” And as the Psalmist joyfully proclaims: The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
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.
Wednesday, Week XX, Ordinary Time
