August 30 - Shepherd & Prophet
Deborah Laforet Psalm 23
August 30, 2020 Micah 6:8
“Shepherds & Prophets”
Last week, I asked you what needs of yours are being met by the church. I had heard a podcast where a minister said that churches need to be able to fill a need for those attending, so I asked you what need was being met. What keeps you coming to St. Paul’s or what first brought you to St. Paul’s?
I took some time to think about that question myself. I started going to church with my family when I was young, but, eventually, my family stopped going. What initially kept me going was that the church needed me. I was a cantor in the church from the time I was in sixth grade, which means I led the congregation in the hymns and the sung calls and responses. But that is not what kept me there.
In university, I began to fall away from the church. I wasn’t satisfied in a patriarchal, male-centred, homophobic space anymore. I questioned the existence of Jesus and of God. I very easily could have been one of those people who turned their back on the church and slept in on Sunday mornings. So what called me back?
The first pull was seeing a woman in the pulpit. Being from the Catholic church, this was new to me. The second pull was having our wedding in a church that didn’t care if Jeff and I had been living together and was flexible to our needs as a couple for the ceremony.
Then I heard the call. Jesus wanted more from me than just going to church on Sunday. I followed that call and learned about a faith filled with justice for the marginalized, oppressed, the voiceless, and those in pain. I learned about a community grounded in Spirit that heard one another, shared with one another, and journeyed together in creating a world filled with this inclusivity and love that I felt in community. This is what I needed and what I still need in my faith and in my church community.
I was not inundated with responses from you. I received just a few, but even those few helped to clarify what we need from our faith communities. One need I heard expressed in those responses was a need for care, restoration, family, friendship, togetherness, and support. We need all of this to fill us up, give us the strength we need to face the world, and the spiritual nourishment to withstand trying times. Because we are human and we all make mistakes, sometimes big mistakes that carry guilt and shame, we need to know we are loved always and in all ways. Because we hurt each other, we need a space where we can be surrounded by care and support and a place where we can experience healing. Sometimes these needs are met in a faith community.
The other aspect I heard in these comments spoke of inclusivity and a willingness to explore tough topics and ask important questions. Many of us are looking for purpose in our lives. Many of us look around us and know there needs to be change. Many of us see a broken but beautiful world and want to make a difference. Church can be that place where we learn about the brokenness of our world, it’s failings, how we might be complicit in those failings, and how we can bring mercy and justice to a world that can be unmerciful and full of injustice.
The gospel, the good news that is shared with us, is that Jesus is both a loving saviour and a wise leader. He loves all but he challenges many. He heals those who are in pain and suffering but pushes back against those who are blind to the pain and suffering. He forgives all sinners but holds accountable those who sin. Jesus is both shepherd and prophet. He protects all his sheep, especially those that are lost, and he questions why those sheep are lost and why others aren’t looking for them too.
Grace read two passages for us, probably two of the most commonly quoted passages in our bible, both from the Hebrew Scriptures. The 23rd psalm, the beautiful pastoral song of David, contains compassionate and loving words, such as, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want…he leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul…Even though I walk in the shadow of the valley of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me…My cup overflows.” This psalm has been memorized by many over the years and for good reason. The words are comforting and consoling when we are experiencing difficulty in our lives. This is Jesus as our shepherd.
Then we have Micah’s words, the prophet. Now, prophets can be comforting and consoling, but mostly God calls on prophets to speak difficult words and bring difficult messages to a people who have gone astray. Prophets are usually condemning those in leadership, challenging those following the status quo, and advocating for change to the current practices of the land. One of the most popular verses that I hear spoken by many in the United Church is spoken by Micah: “What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
Justice, kindness, and humility. Friends, in the midst of yet another shooting of a black man in Wisconsin, Jacob Blake, in the midst of protests, broken curfews, anger and chaos, I feel grieved. I want to go and give these hurting people a hug. I want to offer care to the protesters, to Jacob Blake who may never walk again, to all those who are fearful and angry and fed-up. Then I want someone to give me a hug and make me feel better. This is part of what it means to be a faith community and this is the part so many churches do well
But we also need to do justice. This is the part with which many churches struggle because sometimes doing justice interferes with being kind to everyone; sometimes it feels contradictory to loving everyone. For us Canadian Christians, it feels like doing justice might keep us from being nice and polite. We have to speak out though for those who are suffering. We need to push back at those who are comfortable in their privilege and happy with the status quo. Doing justice is to take a stand and journey with those people who need allies in their struggle for liberation from oppressive systems and structures.
It makes me think of those MBA teams this week. These basketball players are living in bubbles right now with their teammates, all making a commitment to remain in these bubbles during this pandemic so that they can play the game and so that people around the world can watch and be a part of the game. The are, in essence, living in community. This community felt strong enough to take a stand this week. The community of MBA players decided not to play, to strike, and stand up against yet another police shooting of a black man, and to stand for police accountability. It’s our loving and caring communities that give us the strength to fight for justice.
Churches need both shepherds and prophets and I believe that people who come to church are looking for both shepherds and prophets, so that they can, in turn, become shepherds and prophets. They are looking for a faith that is both caring and challenging, a faith that cares about all people and is constantly striving to build God’s kingdom on this earth, a kingdom where the divine walks with us in the darkest valleys, where our cups overflow, where justice is practiced by and for all people, and where we walk humbly with one another and with God. This is what feeds us and what will transform our world.
May we find love and support in a loving community. May we stand strong, with that community, in the struggle for justice. May we follow our saviour, Jesus Christ, who sacrificed his life to be a shepherd and a prophet, loving and challenging those he encountered. And may our loving and justice-filled communities restore our souls and keep us walking humbly with our God. May it be so. Amen.