First reading: Jeremiah 31:10-14

Psalm: Ps 97:1,6,11-12

Epistle: Titus 3:4-7

Gospel: Luke 2:15-20

“He who scattered Israel will gather him, and will keep him as a shepherd a flock.”

Wrong sheep:

A shepherd was tending his flock in a field, when a new sports car screeched to a stop on the road nearby in a cloud of dust. The driver, a young man in expensive designer clothes and sunglasses, leans out of the window and shouts over to the shepherd, “If I tell you exactly how many sheep you have here, can I take one?”

The shepherd looks up slowly up at the young man, then looks at his peaceful flock, and calmly answers, “Sure, why not?”

The young man steps out of his car holding a state-of-the-art smartphone, with which he proceeds to connects to a series of websites, first calling up satellite navigation system to pinpoint his location, then keying in the location to generate an ultra-high resolution picture of the field. After emailing the photo to an image processing facility, the processed data is returned, which he then feeds into an online database, and enters the parameters for a report. Within another few seconds a miniature printer in the car produces a full color report containing several pages of analysis and results. The young man studies the data for a few more seconds and returns to the shepherd.

“You have exactly one-thousand five-hundred and eighty-six sheep, including three rams, and seven-hundred and twenty-two lambs.”

“That’s right,” says the shepherd, mildly impressed. “Well, I guess that means you get to take one of my sheep.”

The young man makes his choice and loads the animal onto the back seat of his car, at which the shepherd says, almost as an afterthought, “Hey there, if I can tell you what your business is, will you give me back my sheep?”

The young man, feeling confident, agrees.

“You’re a consultant,” says the shepherd.

“Wow, that’s right,” says the young man, taken aback, “How did you guess that?”

“No guessing required,” answers the shepherd, “You showed up here even though nobody called you. You took a fee for giving me an answer that I already know, to a question I never asked, and you know nothing about my business. Now give me back my dog.”

We honor:

Today, our Holy Church honors the humble shepherds, the first to gaze upon Jesus and carry the message of His coming to others. Like the shepherd in our story, these men were smart, strong, and quick on their feet. They didn’t get fooled by posers and con-men. Most importantly, they knew their sheep.

God likes shepherds:

God has used the image of the shepherd since the creation of the world. Abel, the son of Adam and Eve, was a shepherd. When Israel blessed Joseph he recalled that God had been his shepherd throughout his life. God liked shepherds, and His Son came to be the Good Shepherd. No wonder that the first to greet the newborn Messiah were the shepherds.

Shepherd responsibilities:

Shepherds had three key responsibilities, to tend, feed, and guard the sheep. To that end they carried quite the kit. They kept a bag made from goat skin in which they carried food and other items. They kept a sling to fight off wild animals, a rod with a knob on one end, a staff with a hook on the end, a flute for entertainment and to calm the sheep, and a cloak for warmth and to be used as bedding at night. They were prepared for anything, and were ready to carry out their duties. Like the shepherd in our story, they knew their sheep.

The voice of the shepherd:

The most amazing relationship developed between the shepherds and their sheep, the sheep would learn to recognize and follow their shepherd’s voice. The shepherd knows the difference between a sheep and a dog, unlike our consultant. The shepherd knows each of his sheep and they know him.

The Good Shepherd:

Jesus is our Good Shepherd. He does exactly those things that all shepherds do. He feeds us with His body and blood. He tends to us, healing and renewing us. He guards us and protects us so that we will never die.

Hearing Him:

The key for us is that we grow in relationship with Jesus. We need to recognize His voice. We need to follow Him. If we do, we are given all those things we so need, food for eternal life, healing and renewal, and protection from the ravages of the world. The humble shepherds heard His voice and came to meet Him. We must do likewise.

To best follow and hear our Good Shepherd we must read His word — hearing His voice. We must talk with Him in regular prayer. We must follow His way, His path. Finally, we must commune with Him, and all who believe in Him, here in Church as His flock. Doing all that, we will come to recognize His voice, answer His call, and we will receive all that He has promised.

Do we know the voice of our Good Shepherd? This is the moment, the time to respond: Yes, Lord, I hear and recognize Your voice and I will follow your way. Amen.