SEM. ARRIEL T. NALLONAR
From the Diocese of Zamboanga and a Theology student of St. Mary Theologate.
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep (Jn 10:11).”
Jesus as the Good Shepherd is a profound image of care, love, sacrifice, and guidance. He is the Good Shepherd that we all want and need.
My involvement in the mission in the Diocese of Catarman was not a coincidence; rather, it was God’s gift. Spending time with the people, visiting them, talking to them, eating together, praying together, and helping them—these were treasures many of us often overlook. These are extraordinary treasures, I would say. Spending time with our brothers and sisters reconnects our broken and unrecognized bond as God’s children. Many of them are longing for that Good Shepherd. Many of them are wounded and lost. There are so many who hunger for the presence of a loving, caring, forgiving, and merciful shepherd. People need priests whose lives mirror the very image of the Good Shepherd—priests who truly walk with the people, listen to them, and are deeply aware of what is happening with their parishioners, never too far to reach.
The Catarman mission shaped my heart to be bigger, to go down to the very basic unit of the Church. It is in reaching out that we are able to witness and help one another. One of the most memorable events during the mission was my encounter with a mother who cried during the blessing of her small house. She was sobbing, not because of poverty, but because she had no one to talk to. Her two sons died after stabbing each other. It was so painful for her as a mother, seeing her two sons kill each other. During our conversation, she asked me if God would forgive her sons. I didn’t have an answer; I could only listen to her sorrow. Sometimes, people don’t need our answers; they only need our presence and the assurance that we are there, truly listening and accompanying them.
Now, it is my challenge to have a heart configured according to the heart of the Good Shepherd—a heart that listens, loves, forgives, guides, and cares. Let’s be shepherds for one another.
