Who is the Shepherd?
His Holiness Pope Shenouda III explains that the true Shepherd is God Himself, and that all human shepherds are only instruments through whom God works. Shepherding is a divine work based on love, sacrifice, restoring the lost, and providing spiritual nourishment, comfort, and guidance.
Spiritual and educational dimensions
- God is the first Shepherd: Scripture declares in many places that the Lord is the good Shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep and who tends His people with tenderness and care.
- Human shepherds are God’s stewards: God works through the shepherds in the Church, dwelling in them to lead the people through them, thus they are called shepherds figuratively.
- Preparation for shepherding: The examples of David and Moses show that God prepares the shepherd with humility, gentleness, and compassion before entrusting him with His people.
- Relationship between shepherd and flock: The shepherd knows his flock by name, leads by example, seeks the lost, and cares for the weak and wounded.
- Warning to shepherds: Ezekiel (33 and 34) gives stern warnings to shepherds who neglect the flock or care only for themselves, affirming that God will require from the shepherd the blood he failed to warn about.
- Shepherding is responsibility, not authority: The true shepherd lays down his life and does not use shepherding as a position but as a stewardship demanded of him.
Practical directions
- The shepherd must be a good example who walks before the flock.
- He must seek the lost, restore the stray, and care for the wounded.
- The flock must learn to discern the voice of the true shepherd from the teaching of strangers.
- Shepherding requires personal knowledge of the flock and practical love.
Conclusion
Shepherding is essentially a divine work carried out by Christ, the good Shepherd, who entrusts part of it to the shepherds of the Church so that they may serve His people with sincerity, gentleness, compassion, and responsibility. Every shepherd will be held accountable for the stewardship he has received, for the flock belongs to God, not to man.
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