The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to follow the Good Shepherd as we attend to the promptings of the Spirit to show the path to fullness of life.
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| Verdant pastures |
In the reading from the Book of Acts, Peter is moved by the Spirit and addresses the crowd resulting in the first converts to the Way.
* [2:38] Repent and be baptized: repentance is a positive concept, a change of mind and heart toward God reflected in the actual goodness of one’s life. It is in accord with the apostolic teaching derived from Jesus (Acts 2:42) and ultimately recorded in the four gospels. Luke presents baptism in Acts as the expected response to the apostolic preaching about Jesus and associates it with the conferring of the Spirit (Acts 1:5; 10:44–48; 11:16).1
Psalm 23 presents imagery of the Divine Shepherd.
* [Psalm 23] God’s loving care for the psalmist is portrayed under the figures of a shepherd for the flock (Ps 23:1–4) and a host’s generosity toward a guest (Ps 23:5–6). The imagery of both sections is drawn from traditions of the exodus (Is 40:11; 49:10; Jer 31:10).2
The reading from the First Letter of Peter describes Jesus as the shepherd and guardian of our souls.
* [2:25] The shepherd and guardian of your souls: the familiar shepherd and flock figures express the care, vigilance, and love of God for his people in the Old Testament (Ps 23; Is 40:11; Jer 23:4–5; Ez 34:11–16) and of Jesus for all humanity in the New Testament (Mt 18:10–14; Lk 15:4–7; Jn 10:1–16; Heb 13:20).3
In the Gospel from John, Jesus begins the Good Shepherd discourse.
* [10:1–21] The good shepherd discourse continues the theme of attack on the Pharisees that ends Jn 9. The figure is allegorical: the hired hands are the Pharisees who excommunicated the cured blind man. It serves as a commentary on Jn 9. For the shepherd motif, used of Yahweh in the Old Testament, cf. Ex 34; Gn 48:15; 49:24; Mi 7:14; Ps 23:1–4; 80:1.4
Kimberly Grassmeyer feels greatly blessed to have had such meaningful words and images to feed her imagination.
There is so much beauty in the first reading in which so many were baptized in Christ’s name; in the Psalm that recognizes God is with us always; in the Gospel reading with it’s familiar call to us to see Christ as The Way. I pray that we each can see ourselves, through a lens of absolute trust and grace, as the willingly baptized – eager to suffer for good – following Christ like sheep through the Gate – knowing that our faith will see us through all and redeem us our sins, so that we may dwell in the house of our LORD, forever. Amen.5
Don Schwager quotes “Green pastures and still waters,” by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"The pastures that this good shepherd has prepared for you, in which he has settled you for you to take your fill, are not various kinds of grasses and green things, among which some are sweet to the taste, some extremely bitter, which as the seasons succeed one another are sometimes there and sometimes not. Your pastures are the words of God and his commandments, and they have all been sown as sweet grasses. These pastures had been tasted by that man who said to God, 'How sweet are your words to my palate, more so than honey and the honeycomb in my mouth!'" (excerpt from Sermon 366,3,1)6
The Word Among Us Meditation on John 10:1-10 comments that we can read Jesus’ words here as a course correction for his opponents, but we can learn something for ourselves as well. For we are all shepherds for God’s people in one way or another. We are all called to care for his people by following in Jesus’ footsteps. Our “flock” may include our children, our parents, or our catechism class. We may be quiet shepherds welcoming a new family at church or mentoring a coworker. But no matter who is in our flock, we need to remember that the sheep belong to Jesus and not to us. He treasures each one of them and wants us to reflect his own love and self-sacrifice.
So ask yourself, “How well do I know my sheep? Do I know the names of my coworkers or fellow parishioners? Do I know the challenges my loved ones are facing?” Sometimes we are so busy with our own affairs that we overlook the hurt, weariness, or fear in someone right next to us. But following Jesus’ example, we can set aside our concerns, “call them by name,” and listen to their needs. Perhaps we can even lead them to a place of peace. That’s one small way to be a shepherd for God’s sheep.
“Jesus, help me to lay down my life for your sheep today.”7
Friar Jude Winkler explains how Peter’s proclamation is understood as Jesus is God like Yahweh of the Hebrew Testament. The Letter of Peter reassures the suffering that Jesus is with them. Friar Jude points to the rapid change of image in Jesus discourse as a technique of Hebrew symbolism.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, asks how can the Center for Action and Contemplation continue to be of service, building on what God has already done with us? How can we offer something of further value that has authority and believability on its own?”
I’m convinced of and committed to the Christian contemplative tradition as the way through and beyond this era. We hope you consider yourself part of the CAC community and will join us in a reformation that is rising from the margins of our institutions and society. This reformation is nonviolent, beyond the usual binary arguments, and is transforming human consciousness and communities at both the conscious and unconscious levels. Moving forward, what else will change our politics and our religions?8
Our relationship with Jesus as Shepherd leads us to verdant pastures and calls on us to be agents of His loving care in the world.
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