"His heart was moved with pity for them."

Sheep without a shepherd are always in great danger. They wander but they cannot find the way home. They are exposed to the teeth of predators and there is no one to protect them. Sheep perish without the good shepherd.

In today's Gospel we see Jesus as the Good Shepherd who looked for abandoned sheep. He stayed with the vast crowd because His heart was moved with pity for them. He sustained people with His teaching so that they would not wander from the way to salvation. Jesus also fed them with bread and fish. However, the time was coming when Jesus was going to offer His body and blood as the ultimate sacrifice for the salvation of every lost sheep.

As Christians we follow Jesus, our Good Shepherd not only to be guided and protected but also to learn from Him this sacrificial love that is able to lay down life for others. "Give them some food yourselves" - Jesus asks us today.

What is this food we are to give others, especially to people who are like sheep without a shepherd? This food is our words of encouragement and admonition, our guidance and prayer, our compassion and patience. This food is also our penance for someone's conversion and acts of self-denial as expiation for someone's sins.