Fourth Sunday of Easter 2020
Fourth Sunday of Easter 2020
God has many titles in the Bible. When Moses asked God’s name at the burning bush when he had his first mystical experience, God answered, “Yahweh,” which means, “I am who am.” At other places in the Old Testament God is referred to as Adonai. Adonai means “God is my Lord.” Jesus refers to God as Abba which means Father. The name for God that we reflect on this Sunday is the Good Shepherd.
When Jesus called himself the Good Shepherd, he was borrowing from the Old Testament. We recall how God is referred to as a shepherd in the most remembered of all psalms, Psalm 23. The key line is “The Lord is my Shepherd there is nothing I shall want.”
But there are other references to the Lord as Shepherd in scripture. In Isaiah 40:11 we hear, “He will feed his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms and carry them in his bosom.” Certainly, this is a comforting image for all of us to reflect on.
Ezekiel describes the king whom God will place over his people as a shepherd. God says in Ezekiel 34:23, “I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David….and he shall feed them and be their shepherd.” The prophet pointed to David who was a shepherd before he was a king.
The people of the Middle East would have grasped the profundity of this metaphor for God. In our country, shepherds aren’t very prevalent. When you raise sheep on the typical American farm you put them out in a fenced pasture. The farmer goes about his business not thinking about how the sheep are doing. Usually, there is plenty of food and water and not many predators.
But in the Middle East, however, shepherds take their whole livelihood from their sheep. A shepherd spends every waking minute watching over their sheep. Grass isn’t plentiful so the sheep have to be guided from place to place so that they might eat. Fences aren’t common, so the shepherd have to make sure that their sheep don’t wander off or fall into a crevice. Predators can come in the night to kill the sheep so shepherds take turns protecting the flocks. If the wolf comes, he needs to be driven away by brave shepherds. Shepherds are strong men who live in the open, who eat on the go, who don’t sleep much at night. Shepherds are totally dedicated to their sheep. Yes, a shepherd is an appropriate symbol for God.
St. Peter, in Sunday’s epistle, uses two words to describe Jesus. One word is shepherd, but he uses another word at the end of second lesson. He says to those reading, “You have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.” The term, “guardian of your souls” is summed up in one Greek word, episkopos.
Christians think of episkopos as referring to a bishop, but the word has a wider meaning. Episkopos in the ancient world referred to all leaders. Episkopos is a noble word which points to the protector of public safety, the guardian of honesty, the overseer of right education and of public morals, the administrator of the law. To be an episkopos was a huge responsibility in ancient times.
Amid the COVAD 19 pandemic our governmental leaders have challenges that they probably never dreamed they’d face. What transpires in the days ahead will show what kind of shepherds and administrators we have. We could anticipate many questions that will be asked about our present leaders in the future. Like, during the pandemic of 2020 were the most vulnerable protected? Were lives of the elderly considered to be as important as the lives of young and healthy? Were decisions driven by economic consideration or by the need to maintain everyone’s health? Were leaders honest or did they withhold important information? Did citizens trust and cooperate with leaders or did they resist restrictions that were meant for everyone’s safety. The governmental and church leaders of the present day will either inspire us or at worst embarrass us. One thing is certain. Nobody should think that being a leader is easy. Teddy Roosevelt said once in a speech about governing:
It is not the critic who counts, not the one who points out how strong people stumble or when the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the person who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly, who errs, who comes up short again and again, because there is not effort without error and shortcoming, but the one who does actually strive….who spends themselves for a worthy cause….who at the worst, if they fail, at least fail while daring greatly, their place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory or defeat.”
We pray for all our shepherds and episkopoi today. May all leaders seek to imitate the good shepherd who is the leader we all seek to follow.
Reflection Questions:
1. Do I like shepherd as a name for God? Why or why not? Do I see obedience as about mutual listening or about submitting to authority?
2. Am I mad at our leaders? What might help me to trust? Do I step up to lead when asked or am I reluctant? What holds me back?
Dear Parishioners,
On May 16th after our 4 p.m. livestreaming Mass we will have May crowning. This will also be a livestreaming event. May has been dedicated to Mary since the eighteenth century. The first place that the month of May was dedicated to Mary was in Rome, but the practice quickly spread. Belgium was one of the first places that had specific devotions to Mary starting in 1803. Since Sacred Heart started as a Belgium ethnic parish this is important to remember.
The faithful have turned to Mary our Mother throughout the centuries when there have been natural disasters or there have been wars. Many favors have been attributed to her intercession. It seems appropriate in the present crisis to ask Mary to intercede for us.
We also remember that we celebrate Mother’s Day on Sunday May 10th. Mother’s Day and honoring Mary seem to naturally blend. Most mothers are remembered fondly by their children. I remember my mother and all the important lessons that she taught be about spirituality and care for the less fortunate. She certainly was the first person to nurture me in the faith. I also remember that she died on May 10th. That will make the day even more poignant.
Let us pray for all mothers throughout the month. We remember those mothers who are struggling to protect their children during the ongoing pandemic, especially those who are refugees. May the example of Mary the Mother of God strengthen them and strengthen us all.
Fr. Mark