16th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B
First Reading: Jer 23:1-6 
Second Reading: Eph 2:13-18
Gospel Reading: Mk 6:30-34

“Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture!” God says in this Sunday’s First Reading. I was a pastor (Latin for “shepherd”) myself until I retired in 2015. Now I make myself available to fill in for other pastors, so that they can take time off and “rest a while,” as Jesus instructed his apostles in the Gospel Reading.

Our archdiocese is blessed with a great many holy, hard-working pastors. Our people love and appreciate them. Nevertheless, from letters I get as a B.C. Catholic columnist, and from what I see for myself, I think we priests need to stop this Sunday and consider how well we serve our flock.

“Dear Father: My parish didn’t have a Sunday schedule of Masses on Jan. 1 because the pastor said no one comes anyway.”

“Dear Father: Where can I hear all seven Readings at the Easter Vigil? My pastor says only three because he wants to keep it short.”

“Dear Father: My pastor said we can look forward to being excused from Sunday Mass when we get old enough. Is that true?”

“Dear Father: Where can I get to confession on Holy Saturday? My pastor said we should go to the penitential service, but sometimes I have to go more than once a week.”

“Dear Father: Where can I get to weekday Mass? I have to be at work at 8 a.m. and the pastor has just cancelled the only early Mass in my area.”

“Dear Father: My pastor won’t say morning Mass on Mondays or Tuesdays and he cancels whenever he has another Mass. Can you help?”

How sad! Don’t we want our parishioners to go to Mass every day? Isn’t administering the sacraments a major part of our job description? Isn’t that what the archdiocese pays us for?

All of us pastors, when we were ordained priests, heard the following exhortation: “Your ministry will perfect the spiritual sacrifice of the faithful by uniting it to Christ’s sacrifice, the sacrifice which is offered sacramentally through your hands. Know what you are doing and imitate the mystery you celebrate. In the memorial of the Lord’s death and resurrection, make every effort to die to sin and to walk in the new life of Christ.

“When you baptize, you will bring men and women into the people of God. In the Sacrament of Penance, you will forgive sins in the name of Christ and the Church. With holy oil you will relieve and console the sick. You will celebrate the liturgy, and offer thanks and praise to God throughout the day, praying not only for the people of God but for the whole world.

“Remember that you are chosen from among God’s people and appointed to act for them in relation to God. Do your part in the work of Christ the Priest with genuine joy and love, and attend to the concerns of Christ before your own ... Always remember the example of the good Shepherd, who came not to be served but to serve, and to seek out and rescue those who were lost.”

That is our vocation. That is our job description. That is what our people can expect from us. That is what we are paid for (quite well, I would say!) Perhaps, this Sunday, we need to read this exhortation again, especially with regard to the sacraments and particularly the Holy Eucharist.

Those who attend Mass daily are a parish’s backbone: the “salt of the earth” and the “light of the world.” We know who they are, for we not only see them every day, but also meet them in the Knights of Columbus, the Catholic Women’s League, the Legion of Mary, etc. They are what we would like all our parishioners to be.

If we do not attend to them, God will indeed attend to us “for our evil doings.”