Shepherd of Shepherds
A homily on Psalm 23 and John 10
The psalm for this Sunday is perhaps the most well-known of all the psalms. It very well may be the most well-known song/poem in human history. The image of God as a shepherd is in large part thanks to this psalm. Christian art, poetry, songs, and stories are filled with this image.
David, the author of Psalm 23, is in many ways the prototypical shepherd in the Old Testament. His story is told through the lens of his upbringing as a shepherd. You’ll remember he was the forgotten son of Jesse when the prophet showed up in town to anoint the next king of Israel. Shepherds were, and still are, at the bottom of the social totem pole. They are the pasture dwellers, the lonely wanderers who are friends with the animals and the earth.
David stands as the greatest in a long line of shepherds in the Scriptures. Starting with Abel, and running through Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, and Moses. David’s kingship was meant to reflect his shepherding. He was to remain humble, live in service for those given to him, and fight to protect the community. A shepherd then is a kingly title, a kind of deliverer, a prophet who hears God’s word, and a priest who mediates the life of the flock to God.
David becomes king after serving in the fields of his father.
Moses becomes the deliverer after serving in the fields of Jethro.
Amos is a prophet after tending flocks in the fields of Tekoa.
The unnamed shepherds of Bethlehem become priests who connect heaven and earth as they serve in the winter fields of Bethlehem.
John 10 is of course Jesus’ famous interaction with the Jewish leaders at the Feast of Dedication in which He identifies Himself as the Good Shepherd. As it was winter the crowds were likely crowded into the porticos around the Temple. About this note that it was winter Saint Augustine comments: “‘It was winter,’ and they were chill; because they were slow to approach that divine fire. For to approach is to believe: he who believes, approaches; who denies, retires. The soul is not moved by the feet, but by the affections.”
As such, the leaders come to Christ and implore Him to make it plain if He is indeed the Christ or whether they should look for another.
In response, Jesus rebukes them for their unbelief and contrasts them (the Jews) with His true followers who are His sheep. His sheep hear Him, obey Him, and follow Him. And He knows them, gives them eternal life, and keeps them safe in the Father’s hand.
On Thursday I was watching coverage of the conclave and the election of Pope Leo XIV. The channel I was watching referenced the Pope as the Church’s shepherd numerous times. And so this morning I want to reflect a bit on Christ as the Shepherd of Shepherds.
Christ’s role as shepherd is one that He shares with those called into full-time ministry to serve the Church. I remember asking my bishop at my ordination consecration service what all of the articles of clothing that he wore meant, including his shepherd staff.
Christ is the shepherd who shares His sheep. And in that sense, priests do not own the sheep they are simply keepers of the Lord’s flock. As Jesus told Peter, “feed My lambs” and “shepherd My sheep”. God’s Church is indeed “His flock” as we are all His sheep. And so the priest is called to enact that role, to be a kind of sacrament revealing to us the Father’s work as the Good Shepherd in our life. But the flock is never ours to own or put our hand on. The Church is His flock, not any man’s.
The priest mystically becomes the voice of the shepherd that we come to know and follow. Paul tells us that a bishop/elder watches over our souls as a shepherd watches over his flock. And like David fought off the lions and bears a priest battles the schemes of the evil one for the life of God in the congregants through prayer, fasting, and preaching. This is one of the reasons Christianity outside of the Church isn’t possible. A person attempting to follow Christ outside of the gathering of the baptized is like a wandering sheep without a shepherd. A lone sheep is an odd sight and a sign of trouble.
Priests then take up all these shepherding duties that are fulfilled in Christ.
The priest is not a king, only God is, but is called to serve and lead God’s people through life.
The priest does not deliver, Christ is our redeemer, but is called to declare and enact that deliverance to God’s people through prayer, preaching, and sacramental administration.
The priest is not a prophet, Christ is the Word of God to us, but does declare to us everything concerning this One who is the Word m.
The priest is not our High Priest, that alone is Christ who is the mediator between God and man, but does offer us the bread and wine at the Table of the Lord.
This brings me to my final reflection on the role of the priest as a shepherd sharing in the work of the Good Shepherd.
Three years ago our wealthy neighbor died of coronavirus. As is customary all of the neighbors were tasked with helping the family put on the 40-day celebration of his life. Given his influence in the country, the first feast day saw thousands of people descend upon our small village neighborhood. I tried to do my neighborly duty and asked how I could help. Being that we were still outsiders at this point as we had only been living here a year at that point I was given the task of unloading sheep in the back of the house.
As I came around back I saw that it was myself and a small group of pre-teen boys charged with this glorious job. I was there for a good hour as truck and truck pulled up with a sheep tied down in the back. We unloaded each one, one at a time, and herded them into the gardens of all the neighbors. By the time we were done there were well over a hundred sheep spread out across a few houses as there were too many to have them all in one place.
I thought about that day this week. While shepherds here are indeed towards the bottom of the socio-economic structure of society, on that day they played the most vital role.
These shepherds were not the owners of those sheep, they were the caretakers of other’s festivities. When the time for celebration comes: a wedding, a dedication, a funeral, or a holiday it is the shepherd who provides what is needed for the community to come together. Without the shepherd, we have no banquet, no wedding feast, no holiday meal, and no memorial. Without the shepherd, we have no table and subsequently no community.
Of all the roles of the priest this is maybe the most vital. The priest does not own the sheep of God’s flock, nor does he use them for his own personal gain. Their job is to keep the flock for the community and bring everyone to the table to eat, to celebrate, to feast, and become one community in the Spirit of God.
And this is exactly what David tells us in Psalm 23, it is our God as shepherd who prepares a table for us. That is the great role of the priest, to be the shepherd who prepares the table. And we as sheep are brought to that table both to give and receive. As sheep in God’s flock we give ourselves to God in thanksgiving. As His children we partake of Christ who is the slain lamb of God given for us.
And so we now come to the table of the Lord to both offer ourselves to God and to receive of His offering to God for us.