WE ARE THE SHEEP OF HIS PASTURE

A MESSAGE FOR THE 2nd SUNDAY AFTER EASTER

Good Shepherd Sunday depicts a serene and bucolic scene of fuzzy lambs grazing in a lush pasture, as their ever humble and vigilant shepherd watches over them, smiling indulgently at his little flock.  In reality, the job of a shepherd can be anything but serene.  He must brave the elements, going out when necessary into the dead of night, the driving snow, gales and thunderstorms, to rescue the more adventurous members of his flock who have wandered off into the surrounding woods.  His first duty, which he must place before his own comfort and well-being, is the safety of his sheep, and he must make sure they are not bothered by the unpleasant marauders from outside the fold—the thieves who would steal the sheep for their wool or their meat, and the wolves who would devour them.

Christ declares himself to be the Good Shepherd.  And we echo the words of the Psalmist, humbly acknowledging that “we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.”  The analogy has many levels, but it is certainly humbling for us to grasp our own place in this relationship between Christ the Good Shepherd and us the sheep.  Sheep, after all, do not have a particularly good reputation for thinking for themselves, and of course, we modern men and women pride ourselves on being independent thinkers.  We do not blindly follow those who might lead us into error or other danger.  We question anyone whose views are not completely in accord with our own.  However, we need to remind ourselves that Christ, our Good Shepherd would never lead us astray, and that if his views do not agree with ours, then it is we who must correct our erroneous positions, and not the omnipotent and all-knowing God.

Our divine Saviour is a shepherd whom we may safely follow “wheresover he leadeth,” who will, if only we stay close to him, deliver us from the stealthy attacks of the wolves, and from the snares of the dark forest of evil and lies that surrounds us.  In his loving mercy, he has provided us with a holy Church, the chief pastor of which is supposed to act as his Vicar.  What a slap in the face it is, then, to this merciful divine Providence, when that Vicar of Christ who is supposed to be our Pastor, our “good” Shepherd, deceives his sheep and deliberately leads them astray, betraying their simple trust in him whom they believe to be our Lord’s own  representative on earth.

In these dark days when we no longer have a visible shepherd whom we can trust, it is crucial that we remember the words of our Lord that “Blessed are they that have not seen, yet have believed.”  We must place our faith in the unseen yet ever-present Good Shepherd, never questioning, but blindly following him towards that heaven where we know he leads us.