SHEPHERD US, O GOD
"My sheep hear my voice, I know them and they follow me.”
 
          How fitting it is that as we meditate on the image of the Good Shepherd this
weekend, we also celebrate Mother’s Day. Our mothers have been for most of us our
loving shepherds, co-shepherding the family together with our fathers. Picture in your mind the image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd, carrying on his shoulders a lamb. It evokes a sense of security, gentleness, tenderness, unconditional love and joy — the same feelings and characteristics that come to mind when I think of my own mother. When I think of my own mother, I always think of God’s tender love.
          Shepherds and sheep may not seem to be very common or relevant images in our high tech, computerized world. And, we don’t like to think of ourselves as dumb, submissive animals. We see ourselves as sophisticated human beings. We have an intellect and a free will, we go where we will and do what we want. And, we don’t like sheep dogs yapping and snapping at our feet. But, perhaps, we are more like sheep than we care to admit. Just like sheep, we seem to be oblivious of everything except the plot of grass that surrounds us here and now. We sometimes spend all of our time feathering this little nest here as if it will go on forever. Just like sheep, sometimes, we aren’t conscious of the ravenous wolves that surround us in the counter-culture in which we live.
          Besides our own experiences of personal wandering or being lost, we ourselves are also shepherds in one way or another. There are people, responsibilities and relationships that are entrusted to us, to our care. And, if those things aren’t applicable to us, we surely have that moral responsibility to shepherd our own selves, making sure that we are directing and leading own lives towards our ultimate flourishing and the realizations of our best potentials and gifts. How are we as shepherds, beginning with our own very self?
Do we bring ourselves to verdant pastures, or do our choices at times bring us to perdition, to wastelands?
           How about our own family? Do we know our sheep, and do they know us?  For parents, who have been given the special vocation to shepherd their families, how is your “shepherding”? For parents of young children, do you know where they go after school? Do you know their friends whom they hang out with? What websites do they frequent? I know that it’s easier said than done, considering that many parents have to juggle many things at the same time to keep things going. Shepherding isn’t easy because what’s at stake are relationships, real people who at the same time have their own unique views and takes on life, influenced by many factors and conditioned by the environment that they find themselves.  For married couples, how are you shepherding your marriage?
          As shepherds, whom do we listen to? Whose voice do we follow to shepherd us? Is it the voice of Christ or another voice? Do we follow the voice of our conscience when it comes to important decisions, even our political choices? The image of a shepherd was a powerful figure during the time of Jesus. Palestine was a rocky and dangerous place, which made it almost impossible for the sheep to survive without the shepherd. The voice of the shepherd was a matter of life and death for the sheep. As Psalm 23 describes to us beautifully, it is the shepherd who leads the sheep to verdant pastures and restful waters and protects them from ravaging animals. Just like Palestine during the days of Jesus, rocky and dangerous, we live in such a time and place where too many appealing, yet dangerous, voices compete for our attention.  They promise to shepherd us to short-lived pleasures, but the long term consequences can be very destructive and damaging, especially for our souls. Whom do you listen to — is it the voice of the Good Shepherd? And, reflecting on the voices that we heed to, are we joyful and content? Are you willing to listen to the voice of the Good Shepherd? – Fr. Cary