And so we come to Good Shepherd Sunday. Ironically the pericope stops before it gets to the Good Shepherd declaration. First of all a word on sheep. I grew up with them. Sheep are not the dumb critters they are made out to be. Sheep possess a gland between their toes that leaves a scent behind that can be followed back to their starting point, should they choose to follow it so a sheep cannot get truly lost. Any self-respecting sheep always 'knows' that the grass over there is better than that here whether it be across the fence, over the hill or over the valley so they wander but they do travel in flocks. Sheep crop grass below the soil level pulling it out by the roots making them the disdain of cattle ranchers even in Australia. To call the pair in Brokeback Mountain Ranchers is a supreme insult. Sheep are very self-sufficient and can be left on islands to fend for themselves. Experienced farmers take advantage of a donkey's inborn antipathy to wolves and coyotes to run one or two with their sheep. Sheep can survive on marginal land where cattle would have trouble and supply milk, wool, sheepskin, and the meat on their bones. Baby lambs are adorable.
As Jesse's youngest David was relegated to minding his Father's Sheep and there he was found when Samuel came calling; therefore he became known as the Shepherd King. It was his experience defending his flock with a sling shot that enabled him to defeat Goliath and gave him the courage to do so having fended off lions and wolves. In the day the shepherd lay across the entrance to the sheepfold as trees were scarce in that environment thus becoming both the gate-keeper and the gate. And it was to shepherds in the fields keeping watch over their flocks by night that the angels came. The keeping of sheep and goats was common in the Middle East so many metaphors derive from them. In Song of Songs Solomon compares a woman's hair to the sight of goats gamboling over a hill.
Son 4:1 He: Behold, you are beautiful, my love, behold, you are beautiful! Your eyes are doves behind your veil. Your hair is like a flock of goats leaping down the slopes of Gilead.
Son 4:2 Your teeth are like a flock of shorn ewes that have come up from the washing, all of which bear twins, and not one among them has lost its young.
Don't try that one on your girlfriend or wife.
Today's first lesson describes the communal living of the members of the early church in and around Jerusalem. They cared for one another in expectation of the soon to come second coming. Two thousand years on our perspectives have changed. We are to be good stewards of our resources. Experience has shown that communal living does not work for most people. We should work to make the world a better place for our fellowman but bankrupting ourselves to do so is probably not wise. It is not a sin to be well off, it is to make the collection of wealth our principal goal.
Little I can add to what has already been written about Psalm 23. You probably heard it at the last funeral you attended.
The epistle is straight up scape goat theology.
1Pe 2:25 For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
Given the verses chosen for our Gospel Lesson the text would appear to be a warning against false prophets. I find it dangerous to emphasize this passage in isolation from the chapter that goes before it and the remainder of John 10. This is John we're talking about. Jesus is the Light of the World. He brings sight to the blind and in Chapter 9 he does that literally but figuratively he brings insight to those who hear and believe. The Pharisees on the other hand are blinded and perceive only a threat to their authority. In this context they are the thieves in Chapter 10 who cast out those who have been given sight.
As Jesse's youngest David was relegated to minding his Father's Sheep and there he was found when Samuel came calling; therefore he became known as the Shepherd King. It was his experience defending his flock with a sling shot that enabled him to defeat Goliath and gave him the courage to do so having fended off lions and wolves. In the day the shepherd lay across the entrance to the sheepfold as trees were scarce in that environment thus becoming both the gate-keeper and the gate. And it was to shepherds in the fields keeping watch over their flocks by night that the angels came. The keeping of sheep and goats was common in the Middle East so many metaphors derive from them. In Song of Songs Solomon compares a woman's hair to the sight of goats gamboling over a hill.
Son 4:1 He: Behold, you are beautiful, my love, behold, you are beautiful! Your eyes are doves behind your veil. Your hair is like a flock of goats leaping down the slopes of Gilead.
Son 4:2 Your teeth are like a flock of shorn ewes that have come up from the washing, all of which bear twins, and not one among them has lost its young.
Don't try that one on your girlfriend or wife.
Today's first lesson describes the communal living of the members of the early church in and around Jerusalem. They cared for one another in expectation of the soon to come second coming. Two thousand years on our perspectives have changed. We are to be good stewards of our resources. Experience has shown that communal living does not work for most people. We should work to make the world a better place for our fellowman but bankrupting ourselves to do so is probably not wise. It is not a sin to be well off, it is to make the collection of wealth our principal goal.
Little I can add to what has already been written about Psalm 23. You probably heard it at the last funeral you attended.
The epistle is straight up scape goat theology.
1Pe 2:25 For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
Given the verses chosen for our Gospel Lesson the text would appear to be a warning against false prophets. I find it dangerous to emphasize this passage in isolation from the chapter that goes before it and the remainder of John 10. This is John we're talking about. Jesus is the Light of the World. He brings sight to the blind and in Chapter 9 he does that literally but figuratively he brings insight to those who hear and believe. The Pharisees on the other hand are blinded and perceive only a threat to their authority. In this context they are the thieves in Chapter 10 who cast out those who have been given sight.
No comments:
Post a Comment