🇻🇦Born into a humble family, Giuseppe Sarto was blessed by Providence with exceptional gifts of virtue and wisdom, dedicating his life to God from an early age. Gradually ascending the ecclesiastical hierarchy, from parish priest to Patriarch of Venice and finally to the Supreme Pontificate, he came to the Throne of Peter as Pope Pius X. His pontificate was marked by a profound pastoral zeal, summarized in his motto "Instaurare omnia in Christo" (To restore all things in Christ). His reforms left a lasting legacy in the Church, including the promotion of frequent communion and allowing children to receive the Eucharist earlier, the reform of sacred music with the restoration of Gregorian chant, and his firm stand against modernism, defending the purity of Catholic doctrine.
🙏 Introit (Ps 88:20-23 | ibid., 2)Extuli electum de populo, oleo sancto meo unxi eum I have exalted one chosen from the people; with my holy oil I have anointed him. My hand shall always be with him, and my arm shall strengthen him. Ps. The mercies of the Lord I will sing forever; my mouth shall proclaim your faithfulness to all generations. ℣. Glory be to the Father.
📜 Epistle (1 Thess 2:2-8)
Brethren: We had confidence in our God to speak unto you the gospel of God in much carefulness. For our exhortation was not of error, nor of uncleanness, nor in deceit: But as we were approved of God that the gospel should be committed to us: even so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God, who proveth our hearts. For neither have we used, at any time, the speech of flattery, as you know; nor taken an occasion of covetousness, God is witness: Nor sought we glory of men, neither of you, nor of others. Whereas we might have been burdensome to you, as the apostles of Christ: but we became little ones in the midst of you, as if a nurse should cherish her children: So desirous of you, we would gladly impart unto you not only the gospel of God, but also our own souls: because you were become most dear unto us.
📖 Gospel (John 21:15-17)
At that time, Jesus saith to Simon Peter: Simon, son of John, lovest thou me more than these? He saith to him: Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee. He saith to him: Feed my lambs. He saith to him again: Simon, son of John, lovest thou me? He saith to him: Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee. He saith to him: Feed my lambs. He said to him the third time: Simon, son of John, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved, because he had said to him the third time: Lovest thou me? And he said to him: Lord, thou knowest all things: thou knowest that I love thee. He said to him: Feed my sheep.
💭 Reflections
✨The liturgy for St. Pius X perfectly intertwines the divine calling with the human response of pastoral love. The Gospel is the foundation of the Papacy, where Peter's threefold profession of love repairs his threefold denial and establishes him as shepherd of Christ's flock. This act of love is the sole qualification Jesus requires. St. Augustine teaches that Christ entrusted His sheep not to another, but to Peter, making him one with Himself so that He might be the head, representing the Church as His body. "Let it be the office of love to feed the Lord’s flock, if the show of respect in denying was a sign of fear" (St. Augustine, Tractate 123 on the Gospel of John). St. John Chrysostom echoes this, stating that love for Christ is manifested in the care for His sheep, a responsibility so great that the Son of God Himself did not refuse to shed His blood for them. "For the proof of love for the Master is the care of His flock" (St. John Chrysostom, On the Priesthood, Book II). The Epistle describes the nature of this shepherding: not to please men, but God, with the tenderness of a mother, reflecting the very ministry of St. Pius X, who dedicated himself entirely to feeding the flock with sound doctrine and the sacraments.
➡️The dialogue between Jesus and Peter in John 21 is unique to this Gospel, crucially complementing the Synoptic accounts of Peter's primacy. While Matthew 16:18-19 presents the promise of the primacy ("You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church") and the granting of the authority of the keys, the text in John reveals the pastoral condition and loving foundation for the exercise of that authority. In Luke 22:31-32, Jesus prays for Peter's faith and gives him the mission to "strengthen your brethren," a role of doctrinal fortitude. Today's Gospel, in contrast, focuses not on authority or infallibility, but on the mission to nourish and guide the flock, directly linking Peter's primacy to his personal and redeemed love for Christ.
✍️The mandate "Feed my sheep" resonates deeply with St. Paul's teachings on ecclesiastical leadership. In Acts 20:28, Paul exhorts the presbyters of Ephesus: "Take heed to yourselves, and to the whole flock, wherein the Holy Ghost hath placed you bishops, to rule the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood." This passage echoes Peter's pastoral responsibility, emphasizing that the flock belongs to God, not the shepherd. Furthermore, Paul's description of his own apostleship in the day's Epistle (1 Thessalonians 2:7), as a "nurse cherish[ing] her children," mirrors the tenderness implicit in the love Jesus asks of Peter. While the Gospel establishes the "what" of the mission (to feed), Pauline writings often detail the "how": with vigilance, personal sacrifice, and genuine affection.
🏛️The documents of the Church, especially those of the First Vatican Council, dogmatically ground the pastoral mission described in the Gospel. The Dogmatic Constitution Pastor Aeternus (1870) explicitly cites John 21:15-17 as the biblical proof for the bestowal of the primacy of jurisdiction upon St. Peter over the entire Church. The Council declares that with these words, Christ conferred upon Peter, after His Resurrection, the responsibility of being the "supreme pastor and teacher of all Christians." Thus, the document formalizes what the Gospel establishes narratively: the successor of Peter holds not just a primacy of honor, but a real and immediate pastoral authority, the purpose of which is the salvation of souls by feeding the flock with truth and grace—a principle that St. Pius X lived out in an exemplary manner.
🧐 See English articles here.