What are some characteristics that good Christian leaders share?
(Accept all reasonable answers.) Write the children’s responses on the board. Say: We will return to these words in a moment. Let’s listen carefully to today’s Gospel now to see what else we might add to this list. Remember that a sheepfold is an enclosed yard where a shepherd watches over his sheep. After a day in the pasture, shepherds bring their sheep to a sheepfold for the night. One shepherd guards the gate and protects the flock from thieves. In the morning, each of the shepherds leads his sheep out of the sheepfold and into the pasture. • Invite a volunteer to read aloud today’s Gospel, John 10:1-10. • Ask: What is the relationship between a shepherd and his sheep? (The sheep recognize and follow the shepherd.) How do the sheep know their shepherd? (He enters the sheepfold through the gate. The gatekeeper knows him. His voice is familiar.) • Say: Christian leaders are sometimes said to model themselves after the example of Jesus, the Good Shepherd. Having heard today’s Gospel,
