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Tuesday of the Second Week of Advent

Readings of the Day
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I was given a great opportunity to take a course in biblical
archeology in Israel. This trip had a lot of great things, but the
best
experience for me was meeting groups of shepherds. This experience put
a number
of statements Jesus made in a clearer context. Let me explain. One day
I was
honored to meet this guy who had been a Bedouin shepherd his whole
life. We
were talking about what his life was like and different experiences he
had
while we were standing on a hill. In the valley below, there were
approximately
200 sheep. While we were speaking, one of the sheep began to walk away
from the
larger group. Without skipping a beat in our conversation, the
shepherd noticed
this wandering little animal, bent over to pick up a large stone, and
hurled it
at least a couple hundred yards to land smack in front of the
wandering sheep's
path, alerting it to turn around and join the rest of the crowd. My
immediate
response was to consider how we could get this guy back to sign for
the NFL!
This very gentle-spirited person, who was willing to welcome me and
all my
goofy questions about his life, had obviously worked for years very
diligently
to gain strength, pinpoint accuracy, and skill.

 

This experience came immediately to mind as I read about
Jesus' image of going after one lost sheep. I have tended to
imagine the event
of a wandering sheep as being once in a great while. But, if the
experience of
my new friend the shepherd is true, this is a regular occurrence that
takes
practice and skill development to keep all the sheep united. It is not
just a
once a year event. If we see Christ as the shepherd, then we know he
is
constantly looking out for us to remain part of his flock. He is
rejoicing daily
when we return from our wanderings to find our way back to him!

 

In our Christian heritage, we have a tendency to think of
the invitation to rejoicing to be held to once a year. We all sing of
joy and
peace during the Advent and Christmas seasons and are often caught
flat footed
the rest of the year. Let's reflect on the joy of Christ the
shepherd is part
of our daily, in fact, moment by moment happiness of our participation
in his
life of grace.

 

As the director of a Catholic Charities agency for years, I
often looked to that one time of the year that we could capitalize on
the
generosity of others to support our work. You and I, as workers in
this field,
know that the work of charity is a year round, daily, moment by
moment
endeavor. Like the shepherd I met in a faraway place, let's take
this time to
remember our year round duty to work hard and rejoice in the
opportunity to
serve those who need it the most to find their way.

 

 

Fr. Ragan Schriver directs the MSSW program at the University of
Tennesee, Knoxville, and is a consultant with Catholic Charities USA.

 

 

 

 

 

 




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