On Good Shepherd Sunday, Pope Leo asks: ‘Whom do we want to guide us in life?’
April 26, 2026
Describing the different intentions that the Good Shepherd and thieves have towards Christ’s sheep, Pope Leo XIV encouraged the faithful to ask themselves, “Whom do we want to guide us in life?”
The Pope offered his reflections on John 10:1-10, the Gospel reading for the Fourth Sunday of Easter (Good Shepherd Sunday), as he delivered his midday Regina Caeli address today (video).
“Jesus is telling us that he is bound to us by a relationship of friendship, for he knows us, calls us by name, guides us, and—just as the shepherd does with his sheep—searches for us when we are lost and binds up our wounds when we are sick (cf. Ezek 34:16),” Pope Leo told pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square. “Jesus does not come as a thief to take away our life and our freedom, but to lead us along the paths of righteousness.”
Thieves, on the other hand, “can take many forms. They could be people who, regardless of appearances, suppress our freedom or fail to respect our dignity; beliefs and biases that prevent us from viewing others and life with serenity; mistaken ideas that can lead us to make negative choices; or superficial and consumeristic lifestyles that leave us empty on the inside and push us to live constantly beyond ourselves.”
“And let us not forget those ‘thieves’ who, by pillaging the earth’s resources, waging blood-thirsty wars, or fueling evil in any form, do nothing but rob each of us of the possibility of a future marked by peace and serenity,” the Pope added.
Pope Leo concluded:
We must ask ourselves: Whom do we want to guide us in life? Which “thieves” have tried to break into our fold? Have they succeeded, or have we managed to ward them off?
Today, the Gospel invites us to trust in the Lord. He does not come to take anything from us. On the contrary, he is the Good Shepherd who increases life and offers it to us in abundance. May the Blessed Virgin Mary always accompany us on our journey and intercede for us and for the whole world.
The Pontiff then recited, in Latin, the Regina Caeli, the Minor Doxology (three times), and the prayer for the faithful departed, before imparting his blessing.
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