In his November apostolic letter, Evangelii Gaudium, Joy of the Gospel, Pope Francis wrote “Today everything comes under the laws of competition and the survival of the fittest, where the powerful feed upon the powerless. As a consequence, masses of people find themselves excluded and marginalized: without work, without possibilities, without any means of escape. Human beings are themselves considered consumer goods to be used and then discarded.” Pope Francis could be delivering a homily on today’s Gospel.
The world we live in is a world of many voices vying for attention. Many of these voices promise a more interesting, more fulfilling, more abundant life, if only we take this opportunity, buy this product, invest in this company, place our faith in this brand, this initiative, this candidate. The voices are loud and insistent. Some are alluring, some tactless, some sentimental or exaggerated. Many are deceptive or completely dishonest. But most are engaged in a feeding frenzy that views earth’s resources and human resources as commodities available for the taking. Even our names and identities can be stolen, for we are seen as prey in a game where winners take everything and losers are abandoned.
This is not a new story, though the global reach of instant media coverage makes it seem larger and more insidious. Jesus’ world had fewer voices, perhaps, and was more geographically contained, but thieves—those competing for power and control—threatened the vulnerable and deceived the innocent back then just as they do now.
I believe Jesus was keenly aware of the anxiety his followers would face as they struggled with who and what to trust on the journey through life. We are pre-conditioned by our upbringing, education and socio-economic status, as well as our culture and location, to trust certain voices and reject others. That doesn’t mean the voices we credit as trustworthy have our best interests at heart.
John’s community was pre-conditioned by their own background and beliefs to heed those voices discrediting Jesus, attempting to sow doubt among his followers and bring them under the control of religious authorities who had no genuine concern for their well-being. This Gospel is written for them and this story is meant to instruct and reassure. Jesus is the gate into the secure sheep-fold, and he is the shepherd who knows them by name, has proven his willingness to put their safety before his own, to die for them. And he knows the way to safe pasture, knows how to keep them together for their own safety, and is leading them toward life in all its abundance. They will not be exploited. They are loved and free.
We, too, here in this relatively tiny community of Sophia Christi, are known by the Good Shepherd who calls us each by name. Our hearts know his voice, he tells us, and can distinguish it from all others. He comes through the gate of our awareness directly, giving no reason to fear. He fosters our connections with one another, leads us to safe pasture where we can explore unafraid. He guards us from those who would divide and scatter us, those skilled in separating individuals from the fold to make them accessible targets. He leads us on paths that end in fuller, more abundant life for all of us.
This life is open, honest, connected with others in respectful ways. It is a life in which others are seen as holy, beloved expressions of God, not as objects to be used for one’s own selfish purposes. It is a communal life in which we recognize the Divine Spirit residing in each of us and all of Creation, where we refuse to engage in deceitful practices or let fear govern the choices we make. And it is a life in which we recognize that our choices—what we do with our resources and where we place our energies—DO matter.
When Peter preaches to the crowd in Jerusalem at Pentecost, he repeats over and over: “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation!” I believe he means: save yourselves from whatever would divide you and take you away from your common life in the sheep-fold, away from the voice of your Shepherd. Peter speaks to us just as clearly and with as much urgency today through Pope Francis who continually focuses attention on our marginalized sisters and brothers, those excluded from the world’s table and thus from common life and nourishment within the sheep-fold.
His words are echoed in a different way in those of Julia Ward Howe who wrote “The Mother’s Day Proclamation” in 1870 which begins: “Arise, then, women of this day! Arise all women who have hearts… Say firmly: ‘We will not have great questions decided by irrelevant agencies.’… We, the women of one country, will be too tender of those of another country to allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs.” From the voice of a devastated Earth a voice goes up with our own. It says: “Disarm!…The sword of murder is not the balance of justice.”
What good mothers, like good shepherds, instinctively know is that all children, all beings, all sheep are inherently precious. “Protecting the flock” casts a wider net when seen through the eyes of a global economy then was possible in John’s day. But the corrupting voices that focus our energies on self-gratification and work to obscure our experience of the one sheep-fold that is our earth must be recognized for what they are: intentionally divisive. Whatever is divisive works against the common good of the sheep-fold, works against a full and abundant life for all.
As Francis continues leading the Church toward economic and social justice for the poorest among us, let us pray to our Mother God and to all mothers within the communion of saints that a mothering heart will supplant the domination model that has been in place for millennia. May She who is the Gate and the Gatekeeper draw us together into one sheep-fold, and may the heart of the Divine Mother beating within us all generate a willingness to care for the earth and Her sheep with our own life’s blood and energy. May She who is our Mother bring us to fullness of life and lasting peace.
How very refreshing to learn of this Catholic Community and to read the homily of a woman Priest!
Having left the RCC over two years ago and having viewed Pink Smoke Over the Vatican while living in Cincinnati, OH, I have wondered if I would be able to find/discover a spiritual home in my new place of residence in Eugene. I will never forget my profound feelings as I drove home after seeing a little of the history of this movement in the documentary PSOV … I was deeply moved.
With hope for a place of worship where I am recognized as a member of a compassionate, conscious and equal community of believers,
Martha