By 
The Joy of a Shepherd
I’m sure the flock sometimes wonders what the shepherd is up to as we all endure the heat of summer. I’m also sure that it is probably just a fleeting thought since I know we all have busy lives and believe it or not school will be starting up very soon. Since I had a moment, I thought I would share with you a sample of my calendar for the week as an illustration of what keeps me busy and joyful to be the Bishop of Tyler.
On Monday evening I had dinner with a couple of the priests just as a chance to catch up and welcome one of them back from studies. On Tuesday I was off to St. Michael’s in Mt. Pleasant for the Confirmation of 64 candidates. It is always a special joy to visit St. Michael’s because I was pastor there 30+ years ago. Some of the people I served are still there, serving in the community. Wednesday I will spend in Tyler with a lunch meeting of the CHRISTUS Foundation Board and recording sessions in the evening. Thursday, I am off to Grand Saline for another Confirmation at St. Celestine, Fr. Michael Ledesma is doing a great job there and in Emory. On Friday, it is Confirmation in Pittsburg. It is a joy to visit Holy Cross also because it began as a Glenmary Mission while I was pastor in Mt. Pleasant.
Of course, there are a lot of meetings during the day and other administrative tasks at the Chancery but the above describes the joy of traveling around the diocese and celebrating Confirmations or other important events for our parishes and missions.
I know that we are all aware of the questions that have arisen since the Apostolic Visitation which ended on June 24. I honestly don’t have answers to these questions but regardless I do know that the Lord is with us, and the mission of His Church in Northeast Texas continues with a blessed vibrancy. The piney woods are a great place to serve the Lord and His flock. It gets exhausting at times, and people from beyond the piney woods are often in touch thanking me for speaking the beautiful truth of our Catholic faith. I’m glad for others to listen in as they seek the Good News of Jesus Christ, but I always assure them that my greatest joy is to serve the flock right here in the thirty-three counties of Northeast Texas. As a kid from these piney woods, I feel greatly blessed to serve the people here as a shepherd and successor of the apostles.
Let us continue to pray for the Church, the Bride of Christ and for all of her shepherds and flock.
Bishop Joseph E. Strickland
Joseph Strickland
Bishop Joseph E. Strickland was named the fourth bishop of Tyler in September of 2012 by Pope Benedict XVI. Prior to being named bishop, he served a number of roles in the diocese, including vicar general, judicial vicar, and pastor of the Cathedral parish. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1985. 