Jerome Berryman, the founder of Godly Play (a Montessori-based curriculum that we use for our youngest children at Good Shepherd), considers the Parable of the Good Shepherd to be the foundational story for children in their growing relationship with God. In this, Berryman is clearly influenced by Sophia Cavalletti (1917 - 2011), the late Roman Catholic educator who developed the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Montessori-based curriculum.
The more I have taught and preached, the more I understand how this is so. Perhaps it’s obvious: I’m the rector of a parish named The Church of the Good Shepherd. But I think the image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd is utterly compelling. It really does encapsulate all that Jesus did, taught, and preached in his earthly life. First, Jesus never abandons us. We are never alone. When we are lost, he will find us and bring us home. Second, Jesus’s seeking of the lost is based in his unconditional, sacrificial love for all humankind. No one is too insignificant to receive his love and care. Third, Jesus is always present and always true. He is a stable and constant presence, no matter how amiss things are around us. He sticks with us, especially when worldly leaders and others do not. He is the opposite of the hireling, who gives up when the chips are down, who is a coward, and who is only a “shepherd” when it’s convenient. When the wolf comes, the hireling runs away, abandoning the sheep. The hireling is self-consumed and is not a real leader. Finally, the Good Shepherd knows each one of his sheep by name, and his sheep know the sound of his voice. Consequently, they will follow him. But in contrast to a leader who gets sheep to follow even when it is to their detriment, Jesus the Good Shepherd leads his sheep to safety, into God’s eternal sheepfold.
Part of the complexity and richness of St. John’s use of the Good Shepherd image for Jesus is that we can easily identify with any character in the story. Of course, Jesus is the foundational, primary Good Shepherd. But there are also times when each of us is called to be a good shepherd to others. And at some point or another, we’re all lost sheep. Perhaps we’ve been the hireling from time to time. Maybe we’ve encountered the wolf on an occasion. It’s a beautiful irony that this parish, named after Jesus the Good Shepherd, found itself to be a wandering sheep for many years. It was corporately the lost sheep. And what we’ve recently discovered is that Jesus found us. We are on his shoulders, and he’s bringing us safely home. No parish, no matter how small and broken, is beyond the reach of the Good Shepherd’s loving embrace. Good Shepherd, Rosemont, is a testament to that fact.
In my role as rector of this parish, I think constantly about what it means to be a good shepherd. I do not take this responsibility lightly. I am committed to being with you, loving you, and accompanying you on your journey in Christ. When you are lost, I want to be there with you. But this is also our duty as a parish. Because of our namesake, I believe we are called to be a collective shepherd to the lost in the world, to allow our parish church to be a safe and loving sheepfold rather than a sheepfold with closed gates to keep certain people out. How can we be such a place in our community and in the world? In what ways is God calling us to be a good shepherd to others?
This Sunday we will celebrate our Feast of Title. Because our parish is not named after a patron saint, we always commemorate our Feast of Title on the Fourth Sunday of Easter, when the Gospel reading is always about Jesus the Good Shepherd. This year we have a full day planned! Father Andrew Mead, the 8th Rector of this parish and Rector Emeritus of St. Thomas Church Fifth Avenue will be our guest preacher at both Masses (and celebrant at 8 a.m.). We have a celebratory luncheon planned after Sung Mass (register here by the end of Friday, April 28!) And then our day concludes with Choral Evensong and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament at 3 p.m. I hope you can join us for a day to rejoice and give thanks that God, who gave his Son the Good Shepherd of the sheep for the salvation of the world, found this parish when it was lost. God, in his great goodness, has provided for us and ensured us that we do have a future and that the Church and world do need this parish. Let us give thanks as we move into the new creation that God is calling us to be, which God has raised up from the old. I will look forward to seeing you on Sunday!
Yours in Christ,
Father Kyle