The other evening, my lovely bride and I attended our little granddaughter’s dance recital. We sat among proud parents and grandparents watching young children perform ballet, tap, and dance routines with remarkable joy. Their smiles were contagious. Their confidence was beautiful. As we watched, it struck us that these children danced so freely because they knew they were loved. Someone had driven them to practices, tied their shoes, paid the fees, encouraged them after mistakes, and applauded them with unrestrained affection. Their joy was rooted in being loved.

Then our minds drifted to another reality.

For my bride, over a lifetime in public schoolteaching, for me in law enforcement, and 9 years in ministry, we have seen children who knew little of that kind of love. Children who were abused, neglected, abandoned, trafficked, exploited, drug endangered or simply forgotten. Faces and stories long buried in memory surfaced once again. Our thoughts also turned to the countless unborn children whose lives were ended before they ever had the chance to take a first breath, speak a first word, or dance before a proud family. The contrast was heartbreaking.

In today’s Gospel, St. Matthew tells us that Jesus looked upon the crowds and His heart “was moved with pity for them because they were troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd.” Our Lord did not merely observe suffering from a distance; He entered into it. He allowed His Sacred Heart to be moved.

That is the challenge for us.

As deacons, and as Christians, we cannot become indifferent to those who are troubled and abandoned in our own communities and throughout the world. Whether it is the child in foster care, the victim of trafficking, the struggling mother facing an unexpected pregnancy, the unborn child, or the lonely soul who feels unseen, the harvest remains abundant.

Jesus’ answer was not simply to lament the situation. He sent laborers.

He sends us.

“Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give.” We have freely received Christ’s love and mercy. Let us freely share them, defending life, strengthening families, and bringing hope to the lost sheep entrusted to our care. There is still much work to do. Let us be about our Father’s business.

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In Christ the Servant + Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam
Receive + Believe + Teach + Practice