Scripture: Psalm 23; John 10:1-10
This is the 4th Sunday of Easter in the church lectionary, and the 4th Sunday is often referred to as “Shepherd Sunday.” The image of the Good Shepherd is one of Christianity’s most cherished depictions of Jesus, and indeed, throughout the bible.
Almost everyone grew up with the 23rd Psalm. It shows God’s great love and care that constantly leads us, bringing mostly comfort and peace to our soul, though occasionally we may experience the equivalent force of the shepherd’scrook, grabbing us and pointing us in a different direction.
This image of God is described poignantly in the 23rd Psalm — written by King David, and is probably the most beloved psalm of all time. He wrote it out of his own experience.
Then in John, Jesus says of himself, “I am the good shepherd. My sheep hear my voice, and they recognize me . . . I lay down my life for my sheep, and I give them eternal life.” I don’t know much about sheep. Haven’t been around them much at all.
EXCEPT when I was the pastor of a church in rural Indiana. We lived in the church parsonage. The church owned over 100 acres of land behind the manse, most of which they rented out to a neighboring farmer, who used it for their cows and sheep to graze. Occasionally a sheep would find a way to get through the fence, and onto our driveway next to the house. And when that happened, the Council encouraged the pastor to gently lead the sheep back behind the fence to safety and security of the pasture! So when I say I shepherded the flock there, it was a true statement in more ways than one!
It wasn’t in my job description, but it WAS an expectation! They don’t prepare youfor THAT in seminary.
But back to our shepherds, they often lived lonely, isolated lives as they cared for their sheep in vast, open areas of hillsides and mountains. Days would sometimes pass without seeing other humans. At night, the shepherd would round up the sheep and gather them into a circle. It was helpful if he could find a pasture with a natural fortress on one side — maybe a circle of rocks, a cave, or a side of a mountain that could offer the sheep a safe shelter from their many predators.
The shepherd would physically lie across the entrance to the gate so as to protect his flock. Any unwanted visitors or wild animals would have to get by him in order to get to the sheep.
In spite of these many challenges, shepherds were often looked down upon in their day. They were seen as uneducated, unskilled, and lacking the social graces or aptitude to get any other job. Need a job? You could always be a shepherd. They were considered “outsiders” in many respects. They weren’t even allowed to worship in the temple if they had the opportunity.
Think of that. Taking care of sheep was dangerous, difficult, tedious work. The pay was poor, with no breaks or vacation. Shepherds were a little rough around the edges, spending time in the fields rather than in polite society.
For Jesus to say, ‘I am the good shepherd,’ would have been offensive to the religious elite. They expected someone more like themselves – perhaps a Pharisee. And yet God chose these lowly “outsiders” as the first ones to see the baby Jesus, born himself in a lowly manger outside among the animals.
Many people today can’t relate to sheep and shepherds. It was a dominant theme of everyday life for many back then, but maybe not today. Even back then, in verse 7 of today’s reading, we are told that Jesus was using the image of sheep as “a figureof speech, and the people did not understand him.”
That makes us feel a little better if sheep and shepherds seem out of place.
So what is the point of John 10 and talk of sheep and shepherds? I find that it is very relevant if we think of shepherds as spiritual guides or mentors for today. The challenge is to discover a spiritual guide or mentor who will lead you to an abundant life and your best self today.
Abundant life. Jesus makes a point of it in today’s passage, and often talks abouthaving an abundant life throughout his teachings. No doubt many would say thereis nothing “abundant” about these times today – with the virus rampant and sheltering in place going on for over a month now.
But maybe it is all the more important to remind that abundant life as Jesus defined is not about what you do or what you possess, but rather who you are when you are in the presence of the divine. Regardless of the circumstances, this is the moment you have. This is your life right now.
What if an abundant life was more about touching and living the divine life? What if you could touch the divine while sheltering in place? What if it could come to you? Would that make this time significant? You don’t have to leave your houseto get it. Maybe it’s even more important during these days to know a shepherd, or, as I would suggest today, if the image of a shepherd is not meaningful for you, think of a spiritual guide, a spiritual director, a mentor, a good friend or teacher.
In the Celtic tradition, they talk about the Anam Cara, or soul friend. It could be someone who mentors you in daily life, or it could even be the spiritual presence of a wise departed one.
The writer, poet and philosopher John O’Donohue talks a lot about this concept in his book by the same name – Anam Cara, or Soul Friend. It has been a very important book for me. If someone were to say to me today, “Well buddy, youhave been exposed to the virus, and you have to be in quarantine for 14 days,” I would probably say, “Wait! Let me first grab the book off my shelf, Anam Cara to have with me.” Everything would be fine. It’s that important.
I have had many mentors over my life. There was my creative writing teacher, Sister Jean, at my high school. There was a new testament professor and a professor of philosophy at my college. There was a pastor at a church in Chicago when I was a young man. Spiritual writers and books have been some of my best mentors. I mentioned John O’Donohue and his important work.
My list would also include the recently departed Ram Dass, John Philip Newell, Richard Rohr, Thomas Merton, Thomas Keating, and Tara Brach, among others.
What do they all have in common? You could say they were shepherds, mentors, spiritual guides through the labyrinth that is modern life. I listen to them as if they were a trusted friend, and of course, they are. They have heard a voice greater than their own . . . greater than the voices in the world that call out for attention. They are trying to teach me to hear, though often my ears are plugged or I am not listening to their wise ways and voices. Yet they persist, undeterred, as if to say,“Whenever you are ready, I’ll be there.”
One of the main ways I hear those voices when not reading them is through mindful meditation, or contemplative prayer. I belong to a contemplative prayer group, and while we are not able to meet in a building, we Zoom every week. Imagine the possibilities when you breathe deeply, calm your mind, allowing a hundred distracting thoughts to drift by, until you are able to hear the shepherd’svoice, the anam cara, a soul friend, or mentor to be present.
Allow yourself to go beyond words. Words are not necessary for what the soul wants to convey.
For three years back in NJ, I attended classes to be a spiritual director. It was likebeing called to be a “midwife” to those who were struggling to bring forth some spiritual sense out of their life. It’s not like counseling. A spiritual director helpsothers understand where God is leading them, though sometimes it brings more questions than answers.
What are your inner voices telling you? What are the areas of your life the Spirit is encouraging you to look at that have perhaps been neglected or buried? You don’t even have to believe in God to benefit from spiritual direction; all you have to do is listen for the wisdom that seems to be the divine birthright of every individual, and is embedded at the heart of the universe.
The divine is as close as your front porch. On a warm summer evening, what can I learn when a gentle breeze dances through the trees, or the creek near our house rushes over the rocks? What can the crickets and coyotes teach us? The moon and the stars?
In another one of King David’s psalms, he writes, “When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established; what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them? (Psalm 8:3-4)
It is a lot to take in, yet there are treasures that benefit us all. When the Shepherd opens the gate and you enter, the whole universe as well as the vast expanse of the soul can be yours.
There’s one other aspect I would like to touch on before I end. Jesus also talks in today’s passage about thieves and bandits who kill and steal life. I heard someone say lately that this virus has stolen life from them. They were angry, and with good reason.
There are the graduations, the weddings, the family reunions, school, friends, jobs, church, and even families are prevented from being together. So much has been stolen from people, including the thousands of people who have been killed by the virus.
Isn’t that all the more reason to enter the gate that Jesus opens? To come to that place where no thief can kill or steal? It is a spiritual place. You could even think of it as the gate to your heart. Nothing can harm when you go to that place. It is the place where you find your anam cara, your soul friend, spiritual mentor or guide.
I’ve even heard some people say these days of sheltering in place have finally given them to time to be alone . . . to walk, to meditate, to read, to pray, to work in the garden. In short, the time to find God. And if not now, when? You’ll neverhave more time.
For years I have preached on this passage, and talked about Christology, the crucifixion, salvation, and separating the sheep from the goats, and that all has its place. But somehow, today, at this time in my life, at this church, living in Marin, and living through the pandemic, I have felt something else. Something jumped off the page.
Even during horrific times, there can be a spiritual awakening and renewal. I have read stories of survivors of other horrific times who say it can be so. In fact, it is the Spirit that can see us through times that are overwhelming. So here we are at the end of our time. Let the conversations continue – not only between us but within us. We have talked about the shepherd as spiritual guide, mentor, soul friend, anam cara. They continue to speak if we will listen. What voices do youhear? Amen