Hearing The Word

A weekly newsletter delivering context and insight into the Sunday Gospels.

April 26, 2026

Fourth Sunday of Easter

John 10:1-10

Jesus said:

"Amen, amen, I say to you,

whoever does not enter a sheepfold through the gate

but climbs over elsewhere is a thief and a robber.

But whoever enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep.

The gatekeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice,

as the shepherd calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.

When he has driven out all his own,

he walks ahead of them, and the sheep follow him,

because they recognize his voice.

But they will not follow a stranger;

they will run away from him,

because they do not recognize the voice of strangers."

Although Jesus used this figure of speech,

the Pharisees did not realize what he was trying to tell them.

So Jesus said again, "Amen, amen, I say to you,

I am the gate for the sheep.

All who came before me are thieves and robbers,

but the sheep did not listen to them.

I am the gate.

Whoever enters through me will be saved,

and will come in and go out and find pasture.

A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy;

I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly."

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Christ Our Good Shepherd

Rev. David M. Friel S.T.D.

Director of Liturgy, Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary

Each reading for the Fourth Sunday of Easter gives two titles for Jesus. In Acts, the names come right from the mouth of Peter, who calls Jesus “both Lord and Christ.” “Lord” calls to mind Jesus’ role as a teacher with authority over us, His disciples. “Christ” expresses our belief that Jesus is the Messiah, the Chosen One, who has brought salvation to mankind. And that’s the very meaning of the word “Jesus”: “God saves.”

The second reading identifies Jesus in different terms, as “shepherd” and “guardian of souls.” The idea of Jesus as Shepherd recurs in the responsorial psalm and Gospel, but the title “Guardian of Souls” is rather unique. It consoles us with the thought that God shelters us, protects us, cares for us.

The Gospel employs again the title “shepherd,” which we often expand to the fuller appellation, “Good Shepherd.” This was a favorite image of the early Christians, long before the crucifix become a popular image for devotion. In fact, what may be the earliest, still extant piece of Christian art is a fresco of Jesus the Good Shepherd, carrying a lamb over His shoulders, found on a ceiling in the catacombs of Priscilla in Rome. The second title offered by this Gospel passage is the self-identification of Jesus: “I am the gate.” Not only does this title come from Jesus’ own mouth, but He says it twice. It begins with “I am,” calling to mind the experience on Mt. Sinai when the Lord revealed that phrase to Moses as the name of God. Then it adds the new image, “I am the gate.” “The gate to what?” we might ask. The gate to heaven, the gate to the Father’s house, the gate to Truth and Life.



There are many wonderful titles for Jesus. He is our Lord and Christ, the Shepherd and Guardian of our Souls, the gate to the fullness of life. Each of these titles reveals to us a subtlety, a nuance, and each one helps us to praise Him more fully.

Walking Through Christ, Not Around Him

~Jennifer Dusza

Saint Mary Catholic Church + Schwenksville, Pa.

In this Sunday’s Gospel, we hear that the “gate” is Jesus Himself: His teachings, His sacraments, His Church. But the temptation to “climb over elsewhere” is real. It is the temptation to craft a faith on our own terms: to follow Christ selectively, to soften His teachings when they feel inconvenient, to justify our behavior rather than convert our hearts. Catholic spirituality insists that discipleship is not self‑designed. The moral life is not a fence we hop but a gate we pass through—deliberately, humbly, obediently.

To enter through the gate means listening to the Word of God even when it cuts against us. It means allowing Scripture, Tradition, and the teaching authority of the Church to shape our conscience rather than bending them to fit our preferences. It means refusing excuses. It means confessing our sins rather than explaining them away. It means trusting that Christ’s commands are not burdens but pathways to freedom.



To enter through the gate is to walk in the way of truth. And Jesus promises that those who enter through Him will be saved. They will find verdant pastures, and they will have life- abundant life! Sometimes it can be tempting to take a shortcut, but the primary person we hurt in this is ourselves. We shortchange ourselves of the glory and the bounty that God wants to bestow upon us. There is a beautiful life of love, grace, and mercy awaiting us. The choice is ours: do we enter through the gate or do we try to climb over elsewhere?