Who Is Your Shepherd?

“Are you a sheep?”

That’s the question someone asked me. I don’t remember if it was about an election, or a policy debate, but that was the question---”are you a sheep?” He was accusing me of following someone blindly. “No,” I said. “I’m not a sheep,” I exclaimed, as I tried to remember the reasons for my actions.

That question really rubbed me the wrong way. It turns out, I’m not alone. For some reason, call it “rugged American independence,” we don’t want to be called sheep. We follow no one. We make our own way. No one tells us where to go!

And yet, time and time again in the word of God we hear imagery of God as a shepherd. And if God is a shepherd, what does that mean about His followers? Yep, that’s right. They’re sheep. Is being a sheep really that bad a thing?

What does it mean to be a shepherd?

Let’s talk a little bit more about this shepherd deal. It the Gospel today Jesus tells us about a sheepfold. Unless you’re a herder this is probably a concept foreign to you. We know that shepherds moved to their flocks around. The land outside of Jerusalem is not that hospitable. Mostly arid, dry, and under oppressive heat, the shepherds would journey about looking for places for their sheep to graze.

Shepherds would take their sheep to the Mount of Olives, a hill located just east of the city. Covered in olive trees and other vegetation, this hill provided ample food for sheep to graze. Another common grazing area for sheep near Jerusalem is actually Bethlehem, known for its fertile lands and abundant pastures; it’s an ideal location for sheep to graze. In fact, it was in Bethlehem that David was said to have tended his father's sheep before he became king.

At night, after a long day traversing the difficult terrain, they would put their sheep into a sheepfold. Imagine a large open rectangular, with walls made of large, rough-hewn stones stacked on top of each other. The walls would be several feet high, providing a barrier that helps keep predators out. At the entrance of the sheepfold, there was a gate made of wood or woven branches, usually narrow, allowing only one or two sheep to pass through at a time. The shepherds would close the gate at night to keep the sheep inside and prevent predators from getting in.

The inside of the sheepfold was a flat, open space for the sheep to rest and graze. The dry, cracked ground would be covered with a layer of straw or other bedding material to make it more comfortable for the animals. Along the walls of the sheepfold, there were narrow ledges or niches where the sheep could huddle together for warmth or protection.

Now, here’s the key to the whole Gospel. many shepherds shared the sheepfold at night. My sheep, your sheep, Father Tymo’s sheep were all in the sheepfold. Anyone coming over the wall and skipping the gate was a thief; the shepherds guarded the gate. When Jesus says the sheep recognize His voice when he calls them by name, it’s because they had to. Each shepherd knew which sheep were his. Each sheep knew the voice of his shepherd. They were connected in a way that we often don’t understand.

God as a shepherd

So, if the psalmist is telling us the truth, and he is, then “The Lord is my Shepherd, there is nothing I shall want” takes on a new, more profound meaning. The shepherd had the full faith and trust of the sheep. When he called them to leave the safety of the sheepfold, they obediently followed him. They followed the shepherd through the narrow gate, from the safety of the fence, and out across the rocky terrain. They knew with confidence that their shepherd, the one whose voice they knew, whose call they answered, would lead them to the safety of the next sheepfold.

Jesus tells us what it means for him to be a shepherd. Unlike the thief or the predator who seeks to steal the sheep from the sheepfold, who climbs the fence and breaks in in the darkness of night, Jesus, the good shepherd, is the gateway to all that is good. Jesus says “A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy; I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.” Jesus comes that we might choose to follow him; to leave the comfort of the sheepfold with our trust in him, and realize all of the manifold graces he has for us.

So, are you a sheep? If so, who’s your shepherd?

So, I ask the question again, “are you a sheep?” If so, who is your shepherd? Who do you follow? For most of us, the answer is, at least in part, “myself.” Think about it. When you have a decision to make, what’s your guiding principle? Whose voice do you seek? I’ll admit, sometimes I don’t look to the shepherd that I ought to. Jesus told us there would be other shepherds. Other shepherds who would call their sheep, but His wouldn’t follow them. Jesus told us there would be thieves and predators, those who would seek our destruction, but He would protect us. And yet, so many times when I could choose to follow his voice, I don’t. I listen to the voice of the world. I listen to myself.

I’d like to think it’s just because I can’t hear His voice, but if I’m honest, it’s because I’m not listening. I’m distracted. I’m distracted by the competing shepherds of the world, of the culture. I’m distracted by the predator of my own greed, my own jealousy, my own priorities. But Jesus is still calling out to me. Jesus is still calling my name. If I listen to him; I will hear him. And this rocky terrain of my life, this sometimes desolate ground, well, I don’t have to go it alone. Because if I listen to my shepherd, the true shepherd, the Good shepherd, He will lead me to the next sheepfold. He will carry me on his shoulders, lead me to green pastures, and help me realize the and live an abundant life.

That begins here at the table of the Eucharist. In this feast we can encounter the Good shepherd. But, like his voice, we have to look for him in the feast. Today, let’s open our hearts to the beauty and truth of the Eucharist, that we may encounter the Good shepherd who calls to us and gain the clarity to hear Him and the strength to Follow him!