March 15, 2026

Dear Friends, We are still celebrating the days of our Easter! I have been blessed since our Easter Vigil, just a month ago, with so many wonderful moments to acknowledge and feel blessed because of the life of Jesus Christ! Since I last wrote a column for our bulletin, I was at our annual Priests’ Convocation. The highlight for myself and so many of our priests was being in the presence of our new Bishop. Bishop John Bonnici was so gracious in sharing some history about himself and that he is here to walk beside us and be present to us as a brother. His words were a welcome breath of these Easter days! This same week, I was privileged to be with Bishop Bonnici, welcoming Cardinal Tobin from the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey. Cardinal Tobin’s nephew attends the U of R, and the Cardinal was a guest presider at Mass with a presentation to follow. He spoke of Pope Francis and Pope Leo. My good friend Father Brian Cool is the Chaplain for the U of R and R.I.T. Father Cool invited our support group for dinner and the evenings’ celebrations. Cardinal Tobin was as gracious and welcoming as our new Bishop! If you are not familiar with Cardinal Tobin, check out 60 Minutes from a few weeks ago and his interview with Norah O’Donnell. This past week, on April 29th, we celebrated a great Doctor of the Church, Saint Catherine of Siena. Her wisdom and witness to the Risen Lord blesses me continuously with her words, “Be everything you are meant to be and set the world on fire.” I pray that I follow our Lord in being everything He desires of me. And this weekend, we hear in our Gospel that those who follow Jesus will do the great things Jesus did, and even greater things. Reading those words, I always marvel in the confidence that Jesus has in you and me. We celebrate this weekend with some very special young people who are making their First Communion! How exciting to have been with 17 individuals coming into the church at our Easter Vigil and now just about a month later to be among all these young individuals saying AMEN to the Body of Christ! Indeed, for me, Easter is still vibrant and before all of us! This Thursday, on May 7th, our young people will be coming to Sacred Heart Cathedral for the Sacrament of Confirmation. These wonderful people from our parishes will be among the first to receive this sacrament from our new Bishop, John Bonnici. The gift of the Holy Spirit will further enliven the lives of these young people. I still recall being confirmed by Bishop James Kearney, and what a special evening it was for me, my family and my friends. I pray our soon to be confirmed will have the same joys and love for the Lord as I do for this very moment. Let us pray for our new faithful who are joining us at the table of the Lord and those who will be confirmed in the coming week! As they bless us with their witness and faith, may we bless them witnessing us being everything we are meant to be modeling Jesus Christ, our Risen Saviour! May we keep proclaiming the Lord with our Alleluias!!! Blessings, Rob

Dear Friends, I have been on vacation the past week, volunteering at the Boston Marathon and visiting with my Boston friends. I look forward to sharing the events of the past few weeks with you in next weekend’s column. In this week’s gospel, Jesus talks about being a good shepherd. His sheep know his voice, follow him, and are protected and saved by him. Monday’s gospel continues where Sunday’s left off, with the most revealing verse. Jesus once again affirms his deep love for humanity by his willingness to sacrifice himself for all of us. How do we reflect that love in the actions of our daily lives? Fr. John Muir offers some inspiring words again this week. God Bless, Father Rob “I am the good shepherd. A good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” John 10:11 My most boring job was working at an insurance company as a college student. My main task? Filing. Now imagine if I had told my supervisor, “I just want you to know, I’m willing to die for these files.” She would have called a psychiatrist — or at least security. There is something absurd in Jesus’ words in the Gospel: “I am the good shepherd… I lay down my life for the sheep.” (John 10:11) It sounds noble, until you think about it. No one dies for sheep. Not a hired hand. Not even a good shepherd. Sheep are important, sure, but not worth a human life. And yet, Jesus insists: I will die for them. The crowd understandably responds: “He is out of his mind.” C.S. Lewis once said that Jesus does not leave us the option of calling him merely a good teacher. If someone speaks like him, he is either lying, crazy, or telling the truth. John’s Gospel won’t let us stay sentimental. Jesus means it. He reveals a love that surpasses logic — a love that measures worth not by strength or success, but by the willingness to suffer unto death. The Good Shepherd’s madness is mercy. His cross makes no earthly sense and yet it makes divine sense. He lays down his life not for kings or saints but for sheep — for the ordinary, the unworthy, for you and me. Think of someone who may feel unworthy of love. Do something simple and generous for them, not because they deserve it, but because Jesus did the same for you. — Father John Muir ©LPi