By Father Casey
By tradition, the fourth weekend of Easter is themed on the Lord as our good shepherd. We’ll hear several passages of Scripture touching on this metaphor, and the music will center on it, too. I can’t help but smile at the way “Shepherd Sunday” coincides this year with Mother’s Day, for the two are definitely related. In my house, as was the case in my home growing up, the mother is the shepherd of our family – moving us to where we need to be, soothing souls, prodding the laggards, calling all our names with love. On that note, a very happy Mother’s Day to all who have been mothers to others – whether or not that involved bringing a child into the world.
One of our readings this weekend will be the 23rd psalm, which the choir will sing on Sunday to the gorgeous setting by Bobby McFerrin, who brilliantly exchanges the male pronouns for female. It’s incredible how much new feeling is evoked in that familiar psalm simply by swapping those few words. If you’ve never heard it, I can’t recommend joining us on Sunday highly enough.
Experiencing this psalm with fresh ears reminds me of a lovely story by famed Anglican author Madeleine L’Engle. In her book The Rock That Is Higher, she tells of a family and their guests gathered in the parlor for a time of entertainment after dinner. Among the guests was a famous actor who, when called upon to perform, stepped forward to recite the 23rd psalm. The words flowed melodically from his lips, and upon finishing everyone applauded.
A while later, after everyone had had a chance to offer some bit of music or verse, someone called the group’s attention to an elderly aunt who had been sitting half-asleep in a corner. They prevailed upon her to add her contribution and she finally gave in, slowly making her way to the front of the room. Unaware of the actor’s recitation earlier in the evening, she, too, recited the 23rd psalm, just as he had. But at the end of the recitation, the room was blanketed in hushed and holy silence.
Later, one of the guests approached the actor and asked him why there had been such a profoundly different response to the two recitations. He thought for a moment and then replied, “I know the psalm, but she knows the Shepherd.”
Come this weekend, dear friends, not only to hear the psalm but to draw close to the shepherd. For life with God begins in all its fullness when the shepherd’s voice rings in our hearts, leading us onward, soothing our souls, calling our names.
Fr. Casey+