Dear Lord,
I come to do your will today with these children who are
treasures to you. Thank you for loving me so dearly so that I might
love them with your heart.
Give me the gift of insight, so that I may know them. Give me the gift
of patience, so that I may correct what is wrong within my heart. Thank
you for allowing my transformation to being instead of doing. May I
praise you for this time. May I thank you for each child and the growth
that I already see.
Let me be joyful in the space that I have, knowing that some of my
fellow Catechists have only a closet to do their work. Help me see all
of this as a gift.
In the waning of the day, may I look back upon these moments with the
children with peace and love. I praise you for these moments of
preparation. I praise you for the Majesty of the first light of day and
the last light of day. I praise you for calling me to be here, may I
always meet you here in this atrium, my love. May the joy that I have
in this meeting be the source of all that I do and proclaim.
You have sent the Holy Spirit to guide me, thank you for this great
gift. May this Spirit be the source of my wisdom and vision. May the
awesome goal before me find other willing hands to reflect your love.
I praise you and thank you for ever and ever!
AMEN
From the Episcopal News
"Heal us when we hurt, show us paths that heal and make holy."
11/13/09 10:12 AM
Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori preached the following
at the
Moravian Seminary in Bethlehem, PA on November 11, 2009.
"Greetings from around TEC, and from our covenant partners
– Mexico, Brazil, Central America, Philippines, and Liberia.
We work with many partners around the world, and we look forward
to the opportunities of partnership with the Northern and Southern
Provinces of the Unitas Fratrum.
One of the great gifts of ecumenical work is discovering new
facets on the old jewels of our faith. I am grateful for and intrigued
by your festival celebration of Jesus Christ as Chief Elder, and
the essential recognition that only he can be the chief shepherd
of this Body of Christ. I’m grateful personally, as the first
line of my job description says “chief pastor” to The
Episcopal Church – a completely impossible task, and an aspiration
that tends toward hubris.
A significant portion of the responsibility of any pastor has
to do with protecting the flock. As Jesus notes, the shepherd
must guard against those who try to get in by ways other than
the gate. Any human shepherd needs
others to help with that work, because the shepherd is just one
person, with a limited capacity and view. A growing number of
shepherds and goat herds in this country use llamas as flock guardians.
That exotic creature is so big that dogs and coyotes and rustlers
all take a second look before they try to sneak in to harass the
sheep.
Sometimes the local protector is even a member of the flock.
My husband and I kept goats in Oregon for more than 20 years,
and I still have vivid memories of an early summer morning when
a wandering dog got into the pasture. The dog was kept at bay
by a big wether (male sheep) who outweighed the other goats by
a good 50 pounds. He protected the rest of the herd until the
human goat herd got there, but he was mortally wounded in the
process. That happens to more human shepherds as well.
We can do a lot of constructive work to equip congregations to
protect themselves – particularly by modeling pastoral ministry
on the character of the chief shepherd: one who lays his life
down for others, one who exists to serve, one who knows all by
name, and loves each member of the flock equally. We all have
the ability to look out for each other – it’s part of
the pastoral task that all God’s people share, for we are
shepherd as well as sheep. Episcopalians talk about baptismal
ministry as including the need to respect the dignity of every
human being, and working for justice, freedom, and peace. When
every member of the body of Christ is met with justice and dignity,
it’s going to be a lot harder for predators to get into the
pasture. When the sheep are working at finding the mind of Christ,
the herd might even begin to turn the predators into vegetarians.
What do we do when we discover predators or crummy shepherds
in the sheepfold? This seminary exists to train up good and faithful
shepherds, well equipped to discern and forestall those threats.
The reality is that we can’t protect everybody all the time.
Life is dangerous, and that includes life in the church. We exercise
prudence, do what we can, and we remember that ultimate salvation
is not up to us. Our Elder Brother is looking over our shoulder,
probably in the direction we’re missing right now, and he
will walk with those who are injured through our lack of awareness
or error. We live in hope that God redeems even the worst damage
of predators.
The Franciscans have a wonderful understanding of the finite
nature of pastoral ministry. They describe it in four acts: show
up, pay attention, tell the truth, and leave the results to God.
Be present and alert in your pastoral ministry, be faithful in
sharing the results of your discernment, and let God be God.
Yet keeping the sheep safe doesn’t mean restraining them
forever in one pasture. Sheep need exercise and varied grazing
if they’re going to stay healthy. A good shepherd keeps the
sheep moving, from one foraging spot to another. A herd that remains
too long in one pasture becomes far more liable to infection with
parasites and disease. It is the risk of journeying beyond the
familiar and known that contributes to health – and a
varied diet provides far better nutrition. The dangers do not
only come from outside. Abundant life requires venturing beyond
the corral.
Life outside the familiar pasture can be challenging – and
our conversation about full communion is a wonderful example.
We are only beginning to discover the abundance of other pastures,
and we have little sense of the blessings they will bring to both
our communities. The good shepherd himself acknowledged the reality
of many flocks, but only one shepherd. He pointed out that there
were herds his hearers didn’t know about, but he was meant
to tend them as well. Our own adventure is a small step toward
that reality. Blair Couch joined the episcopal bishops last spring,
and greatly enriched our gathering – one tiny and yet very
significant step outside the familiar.
Yesterday I got to visit Grace Montessori school in Allentown.
Aside from being located in a parking garage (what an unlikely
pasture for lambs!), this learning community brings together children
from a broad variety of cultural backgrounds. A couple of adults
got to overhear the gospel, as Fred Craddock puts it, watching
a teacher work with the children in Catechesis of the Good
Shepherd.
The encounter began with a booklet these young children had made
for me, with a picture of their class and their names, one page
for each class. On the cover was a picture of Jesus with a lamb.
I asked them who he was, and why he had a sheep. “He’s
found the lost one.” As we looked through the pictures the
children pointed out their names, written in the beginning printing
of 3-6 year olds. There was some pathos as one little girl couldn’t
find her own name. But no one is lost – we found it on the
edge of a page, tucked into the fold. Each one of those kids knows
s/he has a place, and is known by name. The teacher’s hauntingly
beautiful recounting of the story of the good shepherd reminded
them once again: this shepherd will find you when you’re
feeling lost, this shepherd will call your name and lead you home.
We share that task, all of us, whatever pasture we call home.
Our chief and elder brother names each one of us, always leading
us toward a broader meadow, filled with rich grazing and encounter
with more of his varied sheep – spotted, piebald, different
colors and breeds.
Keep us moving, brother. Heal us when we hurt, show us paths
that heal and make holy. Make us better shepherds of all we meet.
Give us the timbre of your own voice, and eyes to discover the
blessed image of the beloved in each brother and sister. Your
pasture is filled with peace and abundance. Lead us home."
The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori
Presiding Bishop
The Episcopal Church
